Perspective
by Aura Spirit
Summary: War always has at least two sides vying for something. Whether it's power, resources, or land, who's good and who's bad is simply a matter of perspective. An accidents pitches a Tenno into a world he has never seen, and soon he ends up caught in a conflict of two different points of view. Follows the continuity set by Misha the Giant and Fracture, taking place after Fracture.
1. Chapter 1

**Have another Splatoon crossover. I figured I'd go ahead and write the first Splatoon/Warframe crossover before anyone else did. Let me know what you think.**

A slew of particles congregated in the white space, colliding and fusing as the power of a Void Key transported a lone Tenno into the Tower. The otherworldly glare from the walls was blocked by the Tenno's dark colour choices, an enormous shotgun hanging in the grasp of its right hand while the other was stretched forward, the remaining matter of the Void Key it used shining and vanishing. The light faded, and it- he- moved, stretching straight upward and doing a few lunges before his powerful legs spurred him into motion, the chain links hanging from his horns clinking quietly against the armour. He ran forward, a maroon blur gliding across the Orokin structure. His helmet darkened the view slightly, protecting his eyes from the glare exuded by the walls of the building. The first thing he did was touch one of the inactive Death Orbs sat nearby, a pulse of energy filling his meter a good distance. He ran into the next room, touching another orb to put himself close to full energy before setting off at a run towards the markers on his map He slowed, coming to a complete stop as the Lotus spoke to him.

"Tenno, you are here on a Sabotage mission. However, our target is not a Void Portal. This time, we strike at the Neural Sentry. I cannot pinpoint its location. Find any data you can in the Tower's systems."

Not saying a word, the Loki Prime set off running again, picking his way through the Tower as he located the first of three markers on his map, and frowned. The vulnerable console was out in the open- no lasers, no sensors, it just sat there by a waterway running the length of the room. It was accompanied by two guards, but two shots from a specifically modded ornate pistol silenced them. He moved towards the console, his fingers flying across the various keys and buttons, the technology feeding the information straight into his brain as there were no screens in the Void. He only found the faintest hints, a few bytes that may hint at the location of the sentry. Backing away, the Loki ran towards the next marker, encountering no Corrupted on the way.

 _This is odd._

Upon arriving at the next console that sat in a large, circular room, he saw that it didn't even have any guards. Accessing the system once again, he found the same signature, a select few bytes _feeling_ slightly different to the rest. Finishing up, he relayed the second set of information to the Lotus and set off to find the final console. As he was crossing the Tower, a collection of cubes appeared in his view, their surfaces cracked and glowing blue.

"Operator, my scans have picked up explosive decompression in several areas of the Tower. I have doubts on the structural integrity of this place."

"Where, Ordis?"

"The entirety of a level five below yours, and partial decompression in two layers five and seven above yours. I'm sure I don't have to tell you that those areas -ARE DEATH TRAPS- are bathed in Void radiation and will certainly cause extensive damage."

"Thank you Ordis, but I don't think we'll be going that high. I've found the last console."

True to his word, the Tenno approached the last one. The doors to the room opened, and he immediately took aim when he saw that the room was dark- the walls were a lifeless grey, no Death Orbs spun. The room was dead.

"Lotus, the panel's out of power."

His guide was silent for a moment before she spoke again, her speech accompanied by a faint whine from his shields.

"I've primed your shields. The system should run off them now."

He approached, blue lightning arcing between his hand and the console as he went to touch it. The lights on the Orokin computer came on, and he began typing, keeping a careful eye on the amount of shields he had left. As he finished data-mining, he sent the collected information to the Lotus and backed away while his shields recharged, taking the time to look around the room.

Aside from the walls being dark, nothing appeared to be wrong. The gold trim was not corroded, there were no cracks or visible damage on any surface, and the water in the tubes was still clear. The power had only recently gone out if that was the case. Making sure there were at least two Death Orbs in the room, he placed a hand on the wall and expelled his energy into it, a white glow spreading from his touch and filling the room. The glow continued to grow when he moved his hand away, and he touched the two orbs to recover. The turbines driving the water switched on, their racket filling the room.

"Tenno, I have located the Sentry. Seek and destroy."

An objective marker appeared on his map, and he began to run again, quickly picking up speed, his cape billowing behind him. Once again, he crossed the tower, going up a level and following the marker into a small atrium. He knew by the door that it was the right place- rather than the simple sliding doors, this door was circular. Upon touching it, it sapped most of his energy and rotated, the several plates making up the door sliding apart and permitting him access. He stepped into an enormous, spherical room. He was stood on a catwalk that extended to a central platform below a sphere that was suspended in the middle of the room by six struts. The sphere itself had three rings separating it into eight sections. A single eye sat on the rings, staring at him as he approached. It followed his movements exactly. Blue sparks leaked from the casing.

"Lotus, should it be sparking?"

"I don't know. I've never seen a Neural Sentry before. I shall assume it is not supposed to be sparking. Destroy it, Tenno."

As the Loki approached, the eye shifted from blue to red, laser plates emerging from the walls and converging on his position. The hologram fell, the true Loki already plugging away at the Sentry with his Hek, the atrocious noise it made reverberating around the room. A metallic screech pierced the air as he broke the casing and set an explosive next to the fracture, leaping away and detonating it. The Sentry's eye rails fell slack, rotating down to the lowest point while sirens began to blare.

"The Sentry looks unstable. Get out of there. Now."

Rolling his eyes, the Loki took off running, following the green marker on his map, frowning when he realised where it was.

"Ordis, isn't that area decompressed?"

"Partially, Operator. I predict that at the current rate, you have two minutes to get here before the intensity of the radiation becomes too much and I am forced to move."

On his run to extraction, the Loki noticed some Corrupted Crewmen up ahead, all shuddering and clutching their heads. He took a visual recording before running again, reaching the extraction floor and stumbling when the force of the air leaving the elevator dragged him forward. His shields were now depleting, and rather rapidly at that. He saw the Liset appear at a hole on the wall, and the Loki practically leapt into the rotating cylinder.

"You have gathered valuable information on how the Void Towers operate. Well done, Tenno."

The Liset pulled away, the Loki making his way to the cockpit. It was sparsely decorated, a colour scheme of red, white and grey broken up by the occasional Noggle.

"Ordis, shall we watch the fireworks?"

"EXPLOSIONS ARE SO- certainly, Operator."

The Liset slowed, rotating around to face the sundered Tower. Already, pale explosions were shattering the hull, and a final burst of sparks heralded the explosion of the Sentry; the Tower ruptured like wet paper, the walls and surfaces bending as the Void corroded the now-exposed materials. A few pieces of shrapnel bounced off the Liset's shields, the shields absorbing all damage.

"Your shields held up out there, Operator. You have not been irradiated."

"Very good."

He headed down into the Orbiter when they arrived, bringing up a large hammer and removing the colours from it.

"Now then... How do we make you pretty?" He mused to himself.

"BATHE IT IN THE BLOOD OF- what about a few shades of red, Operator?"

The Loki smiled at Ordis' glitch. It was strange, and it had ruined several dramatic moments, but he appreciated the Cephalon's endless devotion. Taking the advice, he began to colour the Jat Kittag, his head shooting up when he heard Ordis speak again.

"Operator, we appear to have a- WHAT THE FuuuUuuuUuuu-"

The interface cut off suddenly, and the Loki looked out of the cockpit window. An enormous beam of energy had emerged from the ruins of the Tower, ending rather suddenly before them. The Primed Loki narrowed his eyes, covering them as a blinding flash filled the screaming space that was the Void. The effect was instantaneous- the Orbiter began to shake, and Ordis gasped.

"A planet? THAT'S IMPOSSIBLE- Operator, we have an emergency. We are stuck in the gravity well and the blast took out our engines!"

"Restart them, quickly!"

"It's no use! At this altitude we won't have time to recover the Liset and the Orbiter! I-" he glitched again. "Prepare for crash-landing!"

Wasting no time and ignoring the intensifying scream of rushing air outside, the Tenno made his way to the deployment tube, ensuring he had all three weapons and a supply pack before settling in the tube, armoured plates encompassing it and the entire unit being jettisoned, shields protecting him from the heat of re-entry. As he fell through the sky, he watched the Liset fly out over a forest, the craft cutting an scar into the earth. He turned his attention away, towards the rapidly approaching ground, the enormous explosion as all of the energy was released claiming his consciousness.

 **-Inkopolis-**

"You take care now, alright, Naka?"

"Yes, Miss Mira!"

"Ah! That's _Missus_ Mira, as it has been for… oh I don't know, a decade?"

The smaller Octoling girl giggled before Mira turned away to the two Inklings stood in the lobby of Shast's Shelter.

"Now, you've signed all the papers. I'm sure I don't need to explain them, do I?"

"Not at all." The male said.

"And you have the emergency contact?"

The female flashed a piece of paper with a string if numbers written across it.

"Very good! Now you take good care of Naka, you hear me? She's the last one here."

"Of course."

"Well. Everything is in order..." She turned to Naka and kneeled down, placing both hands on her shoulders. "You behave yourself now, okay? Don't let all this time you've spent here to to waste."

"Yes, Missus Mira."

Mira stood up and to the side. Behind her, Raaz lifted a small backpack onto the child's back.

"Here's your stuff. Take care now."

"Yes, Mister Raaz."

The pair waved as the girl left the shelter with her new family. Once the door closed, Mira and Raaz shot an excited grin to each other and scrambled for the ledger, opening it to the final page. While each page contained twenty rows of names, the final page had three, two of which were highlighted.

"Let's take it up to Shast."

Taking the heavy book in her arms, Mira climbed the stairs, heading to the top floor and walking to the end of the corridor, Raaz following close behind. Calming her nerves, Mira knocked on the door.

"What? Who's there?" A voice wheezed from the room behind.

"It's Mira."

"Mira?" Footsteps approached, the door opening. Shast's wrinkled face looked out from the dark room, his silver eyes blinking in the light. His previously flame-red hair had faded to grey, and while the aura of power was still there, he limped slightly on his left leg. He frowned when he saw the book. "Am I missing something?"

"Turn to the last page."

The old man picked up the book like it was nothing, taking it into his room and carefully placing on the desk. It was a lavish room, an organised desk contrasting with the many items scattered around the room. A pair of thick curtains blocked out the moonlight. Mira and Raaz filtered in behind him, watching as he flicked through the book, scanning the pages full of highlighted names. When he came to the back page, he stopped, dragging a finger along the highlighted name there.

"Just one left, eh? A child of the sanctuary no less. Poor Naka."

"That's the thing, Shast." He turned to her, and she held the highlighter out to him. He looked at it, to her, and to the book, realisation dawning on him.

"You're serious? She- Naka, she's been..." Mira grinned and nodded, and Shast's jaw dropped. "I never dreamed we'd be able to do this for so long... Ten years, an entire decade. This is... I have no words."

He took the highlighter in his right hand, visibly shaking as he put it to the paper. He steadied himself with his left, moved about a millimetre before stopping.

"Mira, Raaz. Come here. Don't you dare leave an old man to do this by himself. You've been here too, even if one of you has no age to show for it."

The pair approached, each placing a hand on Shast's, dragging the highlighter over the final name. He placed the highlighter down, visibly shaking as he blew the ink dry before closing the book.

"To think such as simple object could bring joy to so many..."

He kissed the leather cover, a tear dropping from his eye as the most heartfelt operation of his life came to a close. He tied a thick ribbon around the book, holding it shut as her uncovered a machine in the corner of the room, taking a large glass jar and placing it on a platform and placing the book on a stand inside before switching on the machine, the air being dragged from the jar. He lifted it off, carrying it out of his room.

"Raaz, bring me a trophy stand. And DON'T..." He shouted as Raaz walked towards the wall. "Go through the walls. Use the damn doors."

Raaz ran off as Shast made his way downstairs, Raaz soon joining him and Mira with the trophy stand. Shast handed Mira the jar whilst he positioned the stand in the lobby, the three of them placing the jar in unison at Shast's request. He stepped back, unable to hold back the emotion he felt. He kneeled and wept with joy, Mira taking him into a comforting embrace.

"I never believed it... That there was a chance we'd succeed in rehoming all of the displaced..."

"Hey, look at the bright side. You have your house back."

"It'll never feel the same, not without the children..."

"Hey. Hey!" Mira shook Shast. "Where's the real Shast gone? The one that would immediately go hunting for a new adventure with barely a second's rest? Where is he?"

"Oh, I don't know. He's in here somewhere. It'll take something pretty big to bring him out, though."

"Erm..." Raaz started. "Is that big enough for you?"

The afflicted Inkling was pointing out of the window, and Shast frowned at the light pouring in. He stood up and flung open the door, shielding his eyes against the bright light of something burning up in the atmosphere. He watched the object separate, a smaller piece falling towards the ground faster than the rest of the object, like it had been fired off. Both crashed to the ground. He staggered, struggling to maintain his balance as the explosion hit, the ground shaking beneath his feet. He straightened up, frowning and nodding.

"Yes, I believe that will be big enough." He rubbed his hands together deviously and turned to Mira. "You got your wish, he's out now. And he's going to find out what the hell that thing was."

* * *

Far away, in the mountains where the howling wind and snow drove away those who would try to pass, many sets of hidden ears listened as _something_ burned through the sky, instinctively ducking when the shockwave of impact hit them, shaking the very mountain with the force. Inside the mountain, in the room that one particularly nasty Octoling had called her throne room, a different Octoling picked up a phone. He was aged, but by no means old and weak. He was still toned, the strength in his body visible in the form of muscle. His gunmetal tentacles were tied back, kept short and above his neck. He wore armour with no arms but plenty of pockets. A pair of bracers covered each arm. He lifted the phone to his ear, a quick tone playing before the line opened.

"This is Vulture. Something fell from the sky and landed in the forest."

"And?" A series of tones and beeps came through from the other end, the Octoling quickly translating them. "Your point?"

"Permission to investigate, sir?"

"Granted. Pick up the pace. I'm tired of this globe."

Vulture placed the phone down, steepled his fingers and leaned back, picking up another phone.

"Report, scavengers."

He was met with a chorus of "Sir!", and he quickly gave out orders.

"I want you at that landing site. I will be joining you. Take weapons with you. I'll get Aegis to rearrange the defences while we're gone."

"Sir!"

Vulture put the phone down, checking the two bracers and greaves covering each arm and leg before standing up, disturbing the dust that always settled in the office despite many cleans. Jumping into a shaft, Vulture fell to the foot of the mountain, landing in a pool of ink and swimming forward emerging from a secret entrance into the cold night air, startling the Octoling guarding that particular area. She saluted.

"At ease. As you were." Vulture said as he passed, circling round to the front of the mountain and addressing the ground of four Octolings that were waiting there.

"There was a meteorite that hit the ground, no doubt you all heard it. We're going to loot it for all the precious metal inside. Got it? Don't leave anything for those Inkling thieves to take."

The squad saluted before following Vulture into the woods. In the distance, an orange glow lit the forest as the crashed object burned. As the Octolings approached, the heat built, forcing them to raise arms to shield their exposed flesh. One scavenger sprayed himself with ink, the liquid slowly evaporating. Others took their example, covering themselves for protection. Vulture did not. He strode forward like the heat didn't affect him at all, emerging at the edge of a crater. At the centre sat a metal tube, buried in the earth it carved out. He gestured, and the squad began spraying the area, quenching fires and cooling the crater to a point where he could walk on the scorched earth without getting burned.

"What is this? This is no meteor…"

Vulture descended, placing both hands against the tube and pushing, the object slowly falling over as he pushed, the rest of it rising out of the ground. As it settled again, a burst of steam drove Vulture away, the rest of the Octolings taking aim as the tube opened.


	2. Chapter 2

**Dec 25th update! Happy holidays to you all. Also, the equipment I give our mysterious Tenno to use are all items I have in-game.**

 _ **WARNING: FROM THIS POINT ON, THERE MAY BE NATAH/SECOND DREAM SPOILERS.**_

 _"O-opera-a-ator..."_

A voice dragged the Tenno from the depths of his unconsciousness, his sight returning slowly.

 _"Op-op-operator..."_

The Warframe systems came online, the bottom right corner of his perspective showed that his ammunition was intact and had survived the crash without detonating. His energy had however, been depleted, as had his shields. With no power to refill them, they had not protected one of his legs from receiving a piece of shrapnel straight through the knee, the joint immobile. His map was offline.

"Opera-t-tor!"

"Ordis...?"

"Power... Failing. Containment successful. The reac-t-tor is contained." A long buzz interrupted the Cephalon's speech. "Vital systems... Offline. Foundry... Offline. Stasis... Preserved." The Loki let out a sigh of relief- his Kubrow was safe. "Market... Offline. Codex... Offline. Navigation... Offline. Arsenal...Offline. Transference... Holding. Ship Cephalon... Sleep...ing..."

A single tone, accompanied by Ordis' cubes disappearing from the Tenno's display heralded the Cephalon's shutdown. Growling, the Loki punched the inside of the deployment tube, the chassis rotating and dumping him on the ground, unable to walk due to his compromised right knee. He looked up weakly, just about managing to perceive a group of humanoid creatures stood around him, weapons raised. Lifting his Lex Prime, he took aim at the closest one, one with no apparent weapon, and pulled the trigger, his swaying arm causing the bullet to miss by a wide margin. The recoil knocked the weapon out of his hands in his groggy state, the heat of the crater doing nothing to help him. The leader didn't even flinch, instead approaching the downed Tenno and leaning forward, a beak-like mask protruding from a thick hood.

"Now what have we here?" He said in a rasping voice. "That's some fancy armour you have there. Bet you've got all sorts of tricks." He turned away. "Take them back to the mountain."

The Tenno could do nothing as the other four took a limb each, grunting as they lifted the armour and set him on their shoulders, hauling him back through the forest. All the while, the masked humanoid stared at him.

"We're going to enjoy picking you apart, we will."

Mira and Raaz were stood against the wall outside Shast's bedroom, incredulous at the scene unfolding before them. Shast had been running about the house with speed and stamina that belied his ageing frame, amassing all sorts of clothing, belts and supplies, as well as a few projectile weapons that Mira and Raaz had never seen before. Mira reached out to the nearest one, a shaped block of wood with two curved arms, and a wire strung between them. Shast stopped the next time he ran passed and took it off her.

"Careful with that, that string exerts one hundred and eighty pounds of pressure."

"Shast, what is it?"

"It's a called a crossbow. We found it decades ago in an airtight container. It was in perfect working order!"

"But what does it do?"

Shast chuckled and pointed it downwards, hauling the spring up the chassis.

"You pull the string back, put a bolt in, and pull the trigger." Mira flinched as he did so, the string bursting forward with a twang. She quickly put it down when Shast handed it back to her, making sure the end of it faced the wall.

Minutes later, Shast emerged from his room wearing an outfit that would never be considered fresh in any district of Inkopolis. A thin coat covered his torso while thicker pants and heavy boots covered the rest. Several belts were slung across him, each with a tool hanging off them. He had a backpack on, a bottle of Chroma Gel hanging from it. A rope was wrapped around his waist and a walking stick hung in his grasp.

"Come on then. Off we go before someone else gets there."

He picked up the crossbow and attached it to a hook by his right leg, setting off down the corridor. Mira and Raaz hurried after him.

"We're going now? At this time?"

"Of course! You leave it till tomorrow, someone else will get there first and make off with all the good stuff. If it was a meteorite, there'll be precious metals inside. If it was... Something else... Then who knows what we'll find? Come on!"

Smirking at each other, Mira and Raaz stepped outside while Shast locked up.

"Oh, you may need a weapon, Mira."

"I'll go and get one then."

"We'll meet you at the edge of the forest!"

Mira super jumped, landing in a crouch on top of the apartment she had called home for so long. Obviously she paid a share of the bills, and had done so for a decade, but she never forgot that it was the Squid Sisters who had opened their door to her. She unlocked said door and walked inside, seeing Marie sat at the table with a block of wood and a sharp knife.

"What's the occasion?"

Marie looked up from her work, the first mask Mira had made for her covering her eyes.

"Formal event. I need a smart mask."

"Don't you already have one for formal stuff?"

"Worn it before. I get bored of some masks." She paused, tapping her own mask. "Except this one."

"How are the... You know... Surges?"

Marie lifted another mask from her belt, but this one was not smart or casual. It was the only mask in her collection made out of metal instead of wood or other organic mediums. Rather than being a half-mask, this was complete, corroded and bore an expression of such malice that Mira felt scared just looking at it.

"They're under control, thanks to this."

"And that absorbs the surges?"

"They're more like murderous urges, but yes. It does. I wish the lack of eyes was the only side-effect, not this... Bloodlust."

"Uh-huh."

Mira walked past the table and down the corridor, stepping into the room she and Marie shared. Opening a closet, she picked out her favoured weapon- a charger she had commissioned. Instead of a long-barrelled sniper-like weapon, it was much shorter, with a flanged, rectangular barrel. Set into the weapon were pivots and a compressor. The trigger was not traditional- instead, it was sprung, and programmed to fire when the trigger was released, not pulled. Lifting the weapon, she opened the window to test the mechanism, pulling and releasing the trigger, a short-range deluge falling to the ground. Next, she pulled the trigger all the way back, watching the barrels converge before she released the trigger, a narrow, high-pressure wave arcing away from her before dropping. Nodding to herself, she placed it on the bed before pulling a holster from the closet, shrugging it on before putting her weapon on place. She turned to leave, but was stopped by Marie.

"Going somewhere?" She asked, glaring up at Mira from behind her mask. The Octoling couldn't help it and broke down laughing.

"You know, that doesn't really work when you're shorter than me."

Marie looked down at her feet before looking back up at Mira, flushing in annoyance.

"It's not my fault my ageing stopped when I saved your life!"

"Aww, cheer up! You're the perfect height to use as an armrest!"

Mira leant into Marie, her arm on her shoulder. The Inkling didn't move- it was like leaning on a wall. Marie batted Mira's arm away.

"Where are you going?"

"With Shast. We're going after the meteor."

"Hmm. Be careful then. I can't just run in and save you on a moment's notice."

"Yeah, yeah."

Marie stepped aside, allowing Mira to leave. The Octoling almost ran to the door, super jumping as soon as she was outside, and landing outside the forest beside Shast.

"Ah! Ready to go, are we?"

"Yep."

"Very good. Tally-ho then! Into the woods we go!"

Shast disappeared into the trees, using the distant orange grow as a guide.

The Tenno was lowered into a chair and chained in place, his compromised right leg forced to bend against its will. He winced- without Ordis' foundry, it would be exceedingly difficult to make the armour airtight again. Heavy chains kept him in place- had he had the power, he would simply Switch Teleport with one of the humanoids and escape. In the bright light of the mountain base, he now saw that, curiously, the humanoids had tendrils in the place of hair. He turned his attention to the rest of the room- featureless grey, interrupted by two strip lights on the ceiling, a vent too small to be useful behind him, the door in front of him with the light switches beside it. His Vaykor Hek and Jat Kittag were propped against the wall- his Lex Prime was still attached to his leg.

The door opened, the humanoid who appeared to be the leader walking in, flanked by a bodyguard. He was still wearing his hood and mask. He carried a folding table under one arm, and he quickly assembled it, lowering his hood and placing the beak-like mask on the table. His pale complexion almost shone in the harsh light in stark contrast to his dark tentacles. His eyes were a piercing shade of blue, and they narrowed as he scrutinised his find. He crossed his arms.

"What are you?" He rasped, making an offhand gesture in the Tenno's direction.

The Tenno remained silent. He was not about to divulge his identity or race to an alien that just dug him out of a hole in the ground.

"I'll ask again- what are you?"

The Tenno remained silent. Vulture turned to his envoy, who shrugged. He turned back.

"We know you're an alien to us. You're too tall, even for an urchin. Also..." He leaned forward, tapping the Warframe with his gauntlet. "This armour is hollow. So I'll ask again, one final time. What. Are. You?"

Seeing his chance, the Tenno spoke.

"I am an artificial intelligence."

"Do you have a name? A designation?"

"Zantzi."

Vulture smiled warmly.

"There. That wasn't so hard, was it? I'm Vulture. So, Zantzi. What are you designed to do?"

The Tenno thought before speaking.

 _Do I really want to say? Screw it, I'm stuck here anyway._

"I am a combat android, designed for speed and stealth." Again, mostly true, just warped to protect his true self.

"Combat, you say? Well, why didn't you say so?" Vulture said. "We need all the help we can get against the filth that stole our power supply. And that explains that obscenely large hammer and gun. That pistol of yours didn't feel like leaving your side."

 _Oh? Now we're getting somewhere._ Zantzi's sense of justice was rearing up. Being a Tenno meant neutrality, but if there was a way to keep his skills sharp, Zantzi would take the opportunity.

"Go on." The Loki said, and he would've leant on his hands had the chains not been restraining him. "I can probably help with that."

"Really?" Vulture looked genuinely surprised. "What about payment?"

"It hadn't crossed my mind. But if you must pay me, you can help me rebuild by ship. It no doubts need repairing after..." Zantzi remembered what had happened. "After this entire planet appeared in the Void and caught be in its gravity well."

"We're scavengers. Repairs are what we do. Right then, to business." Vulture unlocked the chains holding the Tenno in place. "Hit me."

"I can assure you, that's not a good idea."

"Don't tell me what is and isn't a good idea. Hit me."

"The force of my fist alone can shatter bone."

"If that's all you're worried about, then I can assure you that there's no problem. _Hit me_."

"Don't say I didn't warn you."

Zantzi forced himself onto his left leg, and drove his fist into Vulture's chest. The Tenno tilted his head in confusion when his fist sank into the flesh and encountered no resistance, feeling no bone inside. The Octoling staggered back, gasping.

"Yep." He whispered hoarsely, sucking in minuscule gasps of air. "Not a good idea."

Zantzi sat down again and turned his attention to his right leg, inspecting the shard of metal embedded in it. He yanked it out, dropping it by his side and forcing the leg to bend- it did so easily, and without resistance. Standing up again, he put more and more weight on it, the armour holding steady, even without shields.

"Speaking of power, I'm going to need some before I help you."

"Well that's easily done. We may not have many Zapfish left, but I'm sure at least one of them is awake."

"Zap...fish?"

"Follow me. Oh, and feel free to pick up your weapons."

Zantzi quickly hosted his other two weapons, relaxing with their reassuring weight on his back before following Vulture out of the room and into a narrow corridor. Zantzi had to bend quite far in order to stand- the structure was clearly designed with much shorter creatures in mind. They stopped in front of an open shafted, grey liquid pouring down the far wall.

"Up we go." Vulture said, and jumped, surprising Zantzi as he shifted in mid-air, becoming more like a tiny sea creature rather than a human. He disappeared into the liquid, a pair of eyes staring expectantly at the Tenno. He merely looked up the shaft wall hopped up at the same pace, climbing into a higher corridor after Vulture.

"Tactics dictate that we have the power source as far away from the entrance as possible. That was Aegis' idea. We noticed a lot of failed strongholds had an accessible power source which was the first thing to be knocked out in an attack. Follow me."

Zantzi followed Vulture again, the bodyguard appearing behind him, keeping a close eye on the tall Warframe. Vulture pulled a key from his body- not from a pocket, but actually from inside his body- and slotted it into a lock and pushed a door open, stepping inside. Zantzi was glad to see that this room could accommodate his full height. The chamber itself was again featureless, and this one didn't even have lighting. However, the room was lit by an electrical glow from two tanks of water. Inside were many yellow fish with large, bulbous heads and coiled whiskers. They looked at Vulture as he approached, a faint hum filling the air.

"Are they sentient?" Zantzi asked, bemused at the Zapfish's reaction to Vulture.

"Oh yes. Which is why I was rather... Annoyed when our predecessors took these beautiful creatures and clamped them into machinery by the whiskers. They are much more cooperative when you treat them as they deserve to be treated- like friends and allies. Now, these Zapfish create electrical energy that we Octolings and Inklings use to power out structures. However, the Inklings have something called the Great Zapfish, which is coiled around their central tower. Now, we don't have a problem with that. What we do have a problem with is that with the current efficiency of technology, they could easily power their entire city with just the Great Zapfish and a handful of smaller Zapfish. Instead, they have both the Great Zapfish and the vast majority of the smaller Zapfish, leaving the Octolings who didn't want to live in Inkopolis as refugees nothing.

"Up until now, we've not been able to do anything. As an organisation, there's only me and four scavengers with Aegis and her ten followers. We don't have the manpower to get into the arrays and steal any Zapfish back. This is where you come in. You say you're built for speed and stealth, and with such a tall build, you're probably faster than most Inklings. We need you to get in, steal some Zapfish, and then get out. In return, we'll help you rebuild your ship. Do we have a deal?"

Vulture held out a hand. Zantzi looked at it, tilting his head.

"You're certainly better-mannered than any Grineer or Corpus I've ever met. You have yourself a deal."

The pair shook hands, and Vulture grinned.

"Good to hear it. Now then." Vulture pulled on a pair of protective gloves and reached into the water, letting his arms hang there until a Zapfish approached and allowed itself to be lifted. He carefully handed it to the Warframe, who shuddered upon reaching for it, the energy arcing from the Zapfish and into the armour, jump-starting the systems- a blue flash filled the room as his shields recharged, followed by his heads-up display appearing. Vulture quickly lowered the Zapfish back into a different tank- its colour had dimmed, and its actions were much slower.

"We have two tanks." Vulture explained. "That way we can rotate the Zapfish around without exhausting them. Now that you know what you're looking for, here is a map." He unfolded a large piece of paper and set it on the floor. "We're here. The nearest Zapfish array is here. Whenever you're ready, just jump to the bottom of any of the vertical shafts to go out the various hidden exits."

Zantzi held his hand over the map, scanning it and transferring it to his display.

"You have very life-like speech patterns for artificial intelligence."

"Trade secrets."

"Whatever gets the job done."

Zantzi placed a mark on the Array, watching it appear on his display underneath a distance readout. Taking Vulture's directions, he leapt into the nearest shaft, running out into the night.


	3. Chapter 3

**Reviews!**

 **Gir240: silly wasn't exactly the vibe I was going for. I think Ordis may be to blame for that. And Shast. Oh well. Thanks for the review.**

 **Skilz321: I have a bit of a soft spot for Loki, since he was my starter Frame, back when that was a thing. Naturally, Loki Prime being the upgrade, I use him the most.**

* * *

"Come on, you two! Don't let an old man outpace you! Someone scout ahead and scare off any scavengers."

Raaz immediately sank into the ground, the disturbance he caused nothing more than a ripple across the surface as he accelerated forward, vanishing against the glow of the flames. Mira and Shast carried on at their previous pace, intermittently wiping the falling ash from their faces. Looking around, Mira could see that many trees were listing at an unnatural angle, no doubt the result of the force of whatever had hit the ground up ahead.

"Shast, have you hunted meteors before?"

"Only a couple of times in my life. Why do you ask?"

"How big were the craters they left?"

"Oh, depends on the size. A rock about a foot across left a fairly sizeable crater."

"Then how big is this object?"

"Judging by the flattened trees already? Big."

Mira rolled her eyes, dissatisfied with the information she had been given. Up ahead, two Inklings appeared in the ashfall, running away from the burning flames. Raaz soon appeared from the ground.

"You didn't have to terrify them, you know." Mira scolded him. Raaz shrugged.

"They weren't leaving any other way. The crater's just up ahead."

As the trio made their way towards the source of the flames, the heat built- they soon came to the jagged edge of a crater, a massive volume of earth having been displaced by the impact. The three of them each raised an arm, shielding their faces from the intense heat. Shast looked wide-eyed at the wreckage before them.

"This is not a meteorite. You two start extinguishing the flames. That should cool down the ground enough for us to walk on."

Mira lifted her weapon, firing wide bursts to cover large areas of ground with each shot while Raaz drifted through the surface, throwing his arms apart to hurl concussive waves of energy, extinguishing the flames. Shast put a hand on Mira's shoulder, his colour changing so that he could use the path laid for him. He shifted, allowing gravity to drag him down the crater's wall. Mira followed and took the lead, covering more ground as she went. The trio stood before the wreck. It was made up of two sections, that much was clear. The rear section was large, bulky and colourless, and did not look like it was meant to fly. The forward section, however, glistened in the flames, metallic red and black paintwork giving it the appearance of a jewel beetle. It jutted from the ground at a dangerous angle. Shast saw an opening in the carapace from which flames were pouring, and he shot at the covers, the bolt bouncing right off. He frowned.

"I guess we can't shut those off, whatever they are. Come on, find an entrance."

Pacing around the downed craft, Raaz and Mira extinguished any flames they came across: it did nothing for them in terms of breathing- it was difficult, as the air was clogged with heat and ash, forcing them to take shallow breaths lest they inhale the dust. They occasionally ducked into their own ink to cool down, having to re-spray the area after a short while as the heat caused it to dry out.

As Mira reached the underside of the smaller craft, she noticed a gaping rectangular hole, the metal glowing in the flames. She doused it, droves of steam pouring from the ink as it evaporated, the metal cooling to a point where she could step inside. She saw that it led straight into a cockpit of sorts, the array of surfaces inside covered in soot and ash. Whatever the front windows were made of had withstood the crash with barely a scratch, again the only visible imperfection being the thick layer of ash covering it from the outside. As she approached the front of the craft, Mira felt something beneath her foot and she brought pressure off before she crushed it. Bending down, she picked up the object, rubbing away the soot covering it. It was a mostly turquoise statue, the upper body wobbling on miniature springs. It was fashioned in the shape of a bulky humanoid, a small cutting of ribbon hanging from its shoulders. Its yellow eyes looked mismatched as it pointed two weapons at an imaginary threat. Giggling at the find, she noticed that two more statues lay nearby, one with an oversized head sporting two horns, and the other painted much darker and resting on a wicked looking scythe. Mira carefully placed all three in a bag before turning around, noticing a shattered ramp jutting from another opening in the hull. She noticed Shast in a matching opening in the larger component of the ship.

"Come on over!" He shouted. "This place is amazing!"

Mira simply super jumped to him, holding her breath as she flew through the ash-clogged air, the embers stinging her face as she fell through them. The larger compartment was in much worse state than the craft- the floor was cracked in some places and completely missing in others, allowing a view of the innards of the mysterious vehicle. She noticed a golden glow glittering beneath the floor, and Raaz's shadows extending towards the pile of shining objects. Mira showed Shast the statues, and he laughed.

"Well, it appears this place had a pilot. A pilot with enough skill to make these or the civilisation in which to buy them. It begs the question: where are they?"

Raaz emerged from beneath the floor, a tentacle curled around one of the gold objects.

"I don't trust it. It has a weird energy to it. They all do."

Shast took it from him, frowning as said energy leached into him. He quickly inspected the reverse of it, running a hand over the protrusions before handing it back to Raaz, shaking his hands. A teal energy clung to them like filings about a magnet, a sickly glow emanating from it.

"Hmm. These things could be dangerous. I'd recommend containing them, but look." He pointed to the rest of the pile. "There's easily more than a hundred there. Add into it the rest of the stuff lying around, we can't possibly transport all of this."

"Speaking of other stuff, look." Raaz lifted a tube from the pile, a vitriolic substance sealed inside. Etched into the tube was a hazard symbol, though the trio did not recognise it, they recognised the meaning- danger. A flowing pattern was also etched into the tube. "Whoever sealed this stuff in here clearly didn't want it getting out."

"I think you're right, Raaz." Shast leaned on one of the walls. "We should probably-"

Suddenly, Mira heard something, her ears twitching. She watched as Shast's hands stopped glowing, a faint pulsed travelling down the ship. A low hum filled the air.

"Shast, pick up the gold thing again."

"What? Why? Are you trying to end an old man's life?"

"No. Do you hear that?"

Shast tilted his head before shaking it.

"Nope. These old ears are failing me."

"I hear something." Raaz said, lifting the key and taking on the glow. "What now?"

"Touch the wall."

Raaz did as directed, the object held in us left hand as he touched the wall with his right. He seized up, grimacing as energy flowed through him. The object rapidly tarnished, its shine diminishing as a black covering engulfed it, and soon it disappeared completely, the lights inside the craft activating and bathing the compartment in harsh white light. Almost immediately, a siren sounded, white light surrounding the trio and what could only really be described as a hole appeared in the air, a howling wind immediately tearing the flames from the trees, extinguishing them as the air vanished. The hole closed, the barriers fading around Mira, Raaz and Shast. They looked about, utterly at a loss as to what just happened. All three of them flinched when a robotic voice pierced the silence.

"Fires extinguished. Operator, is that you? MY EYES ARE- my visual input is nonfunctional. Operator, are you alright?"

The three of them dared not say a word, the disembodied voice speaking again.

"Three organic life forms detected. Is one of them the Operator? Restoring visual feed."

The armature on a table beside Raaz began to move, sparking periodically. Beneath them, other armatures began collecting materials, dragging them into a machine that whirred violently. The main arm swivelled to a spot on the ceiling, sparking as it made contact. A minute passed before it stopped, returning to its original position. Where it had been operating, a collection of blue cubes now floated in the air. While it had no face, it seemed to frown at the Inklings and Octoling in disgust.

"You are not the Operator. You are- FISH FREAKS- not any life form I have seen. What have you done with the Operator?"

"I'm sorry." Shast said, stepping towards the hologram. "Who is this "Operator" you speak of?"

"You mean you haven't seen them? They aren't here?"

"Apparently not."

The mass of cubes swam from side to side in the air, apparently in distress.

"Oh no, if Ordis cannot find the Operator, then... TERRIBLE THINGS- there may be problems."

A dome behind the trio of explorers whirred, a glass partition sliding out of the way, allowing for a dog-like creature with a horned nose to stretch and growl unnervingly. At the same time, a suit of armour formed between two racks, a dark, curvaceous form, adorned with gold struts and a fiery helmet appearing out of thin air, to the surprise of the trio. The quadruped sniffed at it as the so-called Ordis watched, seemingly in distrust.

"Maxie, find the Operator."

Maxie barked twice and immediately took off running, scrabbling up the side of the crater and disappearing into the few remaining trees, leaving Mira, Raaz and Shast stunned. Ordis glared at them.

"Was it you who- MUTILATED MY- tore up my insides?"

"No! No." Shast explained. "We found you like this. You appear to have crashed from space."

Ordis considered the information, processing it the best he could. Data from his Operator's last mission floated at the edge of his memory, something in the Void. He shook in mid-air before turning to the trio.

"Leave. It is not safe here."

The three left, and as they did so, Ordis pulled a Shade from its storage unit, ordering it to scrape the sweat that Raaz had left from the wall.

"Track them."

The Shade floated into the night, a genetic lock now placed on Raaz.

-Zapfish Array-

From the outside, it was certainly an impressive building. A single compound was built around the solitary entrance, several towers and bright lights allowing no shadows to encroach. Grey walls stretched upwards several stories, thick power lines trailing into the distance, supplying the nearby city with all of its power. They were, however, a monumental weakness to the buildings security; maintenance ducts lay beside each coil of wire. While said wires were not insulated, most likely to drive off unwanted intruders, they would not stop Zantzi in his Warframe. He was crouched on one of the wires, creeping forward and drawing power from the lines, watching his energy slowly increase as he siphoned some of the power away. He would no doubt be noticed if he drained power too quickly, but he had all night to complete his assignment. He simply sat and observed the scant few guards below and above him, confident that his dark coloration and unexpected location would hide him. Watching his energy approach six hundred, he ran forward, leaping into the maintenance duct and crawling forward. It had evidently been designed with much smaller creatures in mind. Zantzi was glad that the Swindle horns were not as wide as his normal Prime helmet's, or he surely would not fit.

Reaching the end of the duct, the Tenno hopped up the wall, gripping the girders supporting the roof and holding himself in place, scanning the room below him. The cables transporting power swooped down towards enormous tanks of water, and from his lofty perch, Zantzi could see the faint shimmer of Zapfish swimming around lethargically, the water glowing with their power. On this side of the building there were seven tanks, and Zantzi was certain that there were more on the other side, but that did not concern him. Vulture wanted another three Zapfish, and he was going to get exactly three- no more, no less. He watched the few humanoids beneath him patrolling the tanks, searching for another weakness in the security. Zantzi himself wouldn't be spotted during the capture, but the light of him containing the Zapfish would. And he would like to avoid knocking out one of the guards, as that would prompt a search for a mysterious interloper at the power station. He shook his head. It was going to take a while.

Spotting his first chance, he dropped from the beam, lapsing out of the visible spectrum in mid-air and landing in a crouch, leaping up onto the first tank and positioning his hand above the water. Checking once again to ensure he would not be spotted, he allowed his capture system to activate, orange light pouring from the Zapfish underneath his hand at the time, converting it into data and storing it inside his Warframe systems. He leapt back towards the wall, taking hold of the beam again just as his Invisibility wore off. No-one had saw the glow of the capture. Good.

He hung there for almost five minutes before he saw his next chance, dropping directly onto the rim of the tank this time, taking care not to fall in. He held his hand out again, the next Zapfish disappearing underneath his hand. Looking around after his capture, Zantzi saw no guards, so he went straight for the next one, the light vanishing just after a guard turned the corner. Zantzi checked his timer- four seconds. The guard narrowed his eyes, frowning at the pillar of light he caught a glimpse of. Up on the beam, Zantzi sighed with relief as he watched the guard shrug and carry on his patrol. He found himself instinctively waiting for the Lotus' confirmation of a completed objective. He quickly realised his mistake and sighed again, crawling back through the maintenance duct and running down the wire, clearing the compound and beginning to follow his map back to Vulture's mountain.

* * *

Outside the mountain, several Octolings lay hidden in the shrubbery, their eyes barely visible in the darkness. They watched all approaches to the mountain, nothing passing through their vigil unnoticed. Their leader, Aegis, watched the main path. She had faith in her fellow defenders- to this day, nothing had slipped through any of their watches.

Which made her yelp of surprise when Zantzi appeared from nowhere in one of the entrances even more embarrassing.

Realising what had happened, Aegis rolled her eyes, sliding out of her hiding spot and approaching the Tenno, instinctively checking her weapons as she went. He snapped his attention onto her when she approached.

"You must be Aegis."

"I am. You must be Zantzi."

"I am." He pointed to the mountain. "How do I get in?"

"Like this." Aegis took a remote from her pocket and pressed a button, a section of the rock face sliding open. "In you go. Don't let all the heat out."

Zantzi nodded in thanks and turned to enter when a panting caught his attention. Frowning, he turned to Aegis, who glared at him.

"What?"

He turned around and looked down, inspecting the Kubrow that was sat there, tongue hanging out. It barked once.

"Maxie?" Zantzi knelt down, patting the Kubrow's head. "Who took you out of stasis?"

Maxie moved a short distance away, stopping and jumping back and forth on his front paws.

"You want me to follow you?"

Another bark. Zantzi turned to Aegis.

"I'm following Maxie."

"Incorrect. You are standing down."

Zantzi glared at the Octoling.

"Excuse me?"

"As your superior, I order you to stand down."

"My superior?" Zantzi leaned in close, getting right in Aegis's face. "Listen, girl. You are not my superior. Where I come from, there is a being far more powerful than you-"

"Alright, where do you come from?" Aegis scowled back, arms crossed. Zantzi saw that the bracers covering her arms were scored into eight sections. He realised he had blown his cover; not entirely, but he had backed himself into a corner he had no way of getting out of. He groaned.

"I come from a space called the Void."

"Well listen closely, you oversized sneak. Look around. We're not in your so-called Void. You are an alien here, and we're giving you shelter. So do yourself a favour and do as we say. Besides. We can't have you running away with three Zapfish now, can we? Unless..." She gave him a sly smirk. "Unless you failed?"

Zantzi opened his hand, palm up, showing Aegis the holographic display that appeared. It showed three simplified sprites of Zapfish.

"Where do I take them?"

"Up to the power tanks. Vulture will sort them out."

Turning away, Zantzi slapped his thigh twice, Maxie padding over to him and falling him behind him. He saw Aegis tense up as the Kubrow approached, obviously wary of the strange creature. Zantzi led him inside and took him into his arms as he wall hopped up to Vulture's power tanks. The Octoling himself was waiting inside the relatively spacious room. He looked up at Zantzi, tensing as Maxie stepped out from behind the Warframe.

"What the hell is that?"

"It's Maxie. Think of him like a dog." Zantzi said. Vulture's expression became even more confused. "You… do know what a dog is, right?"

"Assume that I don't."

"It's a quadrupedal mammal, bred for a variety of utilities, or just for show."

"Alright. The Zapfish, do you have them?"

Zantzi hopped onto the edge of the tank, orange light spilling from his hand as he reformed the Zapfish, one by one. Vulture counted them out as they dropped into the water.

"Very good. We should have some more work for you soon."

"If I may, Vulture. Maxie here clearly wants me to follow him."

"And you want to?"

"Yes."

"Well, go on then. Just one thing." He tossed a small object. "Radio. I don't expect to have to explain its function."

Zantzi simply waved and headed back outside.

"Alright, Maxie. Where to?"

* * *

 **Please point out any errors, so that they may be corrected. Let me know what you think in the reviews. Again, all Warframe items I write about are all ones I have in-game.**


	4. Chapter 4

**Sorry to have kept you waiting, have another chapter.**

Zantzi kept pace with Maxie, the Kubrow running a few metres ahead of him, leading him through the shattered forest. Most trees were badly charred of listing at an unnatural angle, wide discs of dirt protruding from the ground, a result of the roots systems trapping the earth between them. Smoke still hung heavy in the air, but since Maxie was close to the ground and Zantzi had his Warframe, it did not affect either of them. As they went deeper into the forest, Zantzi noticed that many trees had been swept in the opposite direction- towards whatever they were rapidly approaching. He didn't understand why, as it simply didn't make sense for them to have been dragged towards an explosion.

Maxie stopped at the lip of a crater, panting and waiting for his master to follow. The Tenno stood up on the crater and almost cried when he saw what was inside- his crashed Orbiter and Liset. Checking his map, he saw that his deployment tube had landed almost a kilometre away, in the direction of the mountain. He knelt beside Maxie, patting him on the head.

"Looks like we were lucky to survive, boy."

The Kubrow barked once in agreement. Quickly inspecting his surroundings and deeming them to be safe, Zantzi jumped into the crater, sliding down the cliff face and running towards his downed vehicle, finding the hole between the Liset and the Orbiter and climbing inside, a familiar robotic voice speaking almost immediately, much to Zantzi's surprise.

"Inorganic life... Operator?"

The mass of cubes wavered in mid-air, and Zantzi cocked his head.

"Hello, Ordis."

"Operator! It is you! I'm so glad you're alive!"

"Yeah, I'm fine. But who powered you back on? When I woke up in my deployment tube, you powered down."

"I believe a living organism used a Void Key to power up the Orbiter and Liset. If I had to guess, it was most likely those FISH FREAKS- strange life forms I saw earlier."

"Did they have tentacles in the place of hair?"

"Yes, Operator."

"How many?"

"Well, two of them had two large ones and the other, a mass of smaller ones."

"An Octoling, and the others must have been Inklings."

"I sent your Shade after them. Should I show the feed?"

"Go for it."

The blue cubes that made up Ordis' appearance vanished, and were replaced by a circular field of view with a targeting crosshair in the centre. A health metre and shield gauge took up the upper right corner of the screen and an ammo counter the lower right. The Shade zoomed in, focussing on the trio. Its sensors picked up a voice.

"So, what do we know? It is alien, the so-called "Operator" must be intelligent to be collecting these statues. Those gold things are hazardous, and the ship was carrying other dangerous materials."

"Don't forget about the computer." A feminine voice piped up. Zantzi watched the woman take tree statues from her pockets. "These statues are really well-made."

"My noggles..." Zantzi mumbled.

"Yes, the computer. It was clearly sentient and controlled aspects of the ship, releasing that _thing_."

"Shast, do you have any idea what that thing was?"

"Nope. But if I went on archaeological digs, it looked like some sort of dog, which were quadrupedal mammals of which there were many breeds. They accompanied humans." The old Inkling stopped walking to cough, the Octoling immediately moving to support his weight.

"We've been outside in the cold for too long. Come on, let's get you back. Raaz?"

What happened next startled both Zantzi and Ordis. While they had seen many horrors take place across the solar system, many weird and wonderful creatures doing equally weird of wonderful things, nothing prepared them for what happened next. The Inkling with dull tentacles extended many more appendages from his back, coiling them around the other two figures and sinking into the ground.

"What?" Zantzi sputtered, rewinding the footage and watching them disappear again. "What?!"

"Operator, I locked onto the strange one's genetic signature. I can easily have the Shade locate him."

"Do that. I'm going to go and speak to Vulture."

Zantzi left the downed Orbiter, making sure to mark it on his map before setting off at a run, back towards the mountain. Aegis rolled her eyes as the Warframe passed her, the false panels leading into the mountain sliding apart. When Zantzi did not find Vulture in the power tanks, he headed up another level to the summit of the mountain, travelling through a vast, catwalk-filled room before finding the double-doors leading into the room. Vulture looked up from something he was writing.

"Did I say you could enter?"

"This is important. Two Inklings and an Octoling found my ship."

"Did they steal anything?"

"Only three decorative statues. I'll get them back as soon as possible, but that may be difficult."

"How so?"

"What are the abilities of Inklings?"

"Biologically, they're very similar to Octolings, so the ability to turn into a squid, travelling through ink, super jumping, and refillable ink weaponry."

"Well I just watched one vanish into the ground."

Vulture frowned, leaning back in his chair.

"Are you sure your eyes weren't playing tricks on you?"

Zantzi held up his hand, replaying the video taken by the Shade, watching again as black tendrils spread from the youngest-looking one and encompass the other two, all three of them vanishing into the ground. Vulture's eyes widened.

"I had heard stories of the afflicted one. I never thought he was real."

"Afflicted?"

"A couple of years ago, one of our officers broke out of her prison and made a getaway. However, before she could get very far, a young man stood before her. Now, our officers are not pushovers, and this one in particular likes to punch things. But as she approached, she described the situation as the young Inkling disappearing into the ground, reappearing behind her and snaring her with lots of black tentacles; she was swiftly imprisoned. Whatever happened to give that Inkling those powers was either never released or covered up. Either way, we don't know what he is. But if he was at your ship, it would be wise not to draw his attention. Now then- you're here, you've shown me this feed, now go and follow it up. Get me some information on the afflicted one. If you can, info on the other two would be great too."

Zantzi made a move towards the door, but Vulture stopped him.

"Tomorrow. Rest up tonight, so you can-"

"I am an android, Vulture. I don't need rest."

Vulture raised his hand, index finger extended. He looked like he was about to protest, his mouth open, but them his mouth closed, and he lowered his arm.

"Fair point. If you really want to go out and do stuff that badly, to ahead. But what about your companion?" The Octoling pointed at the Kubrow who was sat quietly by his master's legs. "I'm no biologist, and I have no clue what it is, but that is a living breathing thing. Living, breathing things tire out. Are you going to overwork your friend?"

Zantzi looked towards his feet, appalled at how easily Vulture had guilt-tripped him into standing down. He knew Maxie had very high limits, but if he went against Vulture and headed out, it would appear that he was not allowing the Kubrow rest. He sagged.

"Fine." Vulture smiled.

"Excellent. If you go out the corridor, go down two levels to the first residential level."

"You have a residential level? But there's only what, fifteen of you?"

"You don't expect all fifteen of us to share a room, do you?"

Zantzi grunted and caught the key that Vulture threw at him.

"We'll get to repairing your craft at some point. I trust you found it?"

"Yeah. Classified."

"I don't know how you plan on hiding a crater, but whatever. Let your companion, quadruped-"

"Kubrow."

"Let your Kubrow get some rest."

* * *

Mira slid a key into a door, twisting it until she heard a click. She removed the key, pushed the door open and shut it behind her, locking it again. Inside, Marie was brushing wood dust off the plastic sheet covering the table, making sure any errant shavings were cleaned away. When it passed her inspection, she removed the sheet and folded it, placing it in a draw before cleaning the floor around the table. Mira leant on the door frame, watching. She noticed Marie's sour expression.

"Have you been working on that mask all evening?"

"Yes."

"What went wrong?"

"I just, ugh. I just couldn't get it right." She pointed to the worktop, a half-mask sat on top of it. Being a formal mask, it was much simpler than most of the masks Marie had made, composed of a shaped piece of wood. It was painted white, with a black diamond covering where her right eye would be, a thin, horizontal line stretching across the mask. Two small spikes reached down either side of the mask.

"I like it."

"Well I don't. It doesn't speak to me."

Mira stood up straight and crossed the room, pulling Marie into an embrace.

"Hey..." She whispered. "What's wrong? You're not usually like this."

Marie sagged slightly- anyone watching wouldn't have noticed it, but Mira felt it.

"I'm... Scared."

Mira took a step back, allowing Marie to see her incredulous expression.

"Scared? You? What did that? What are you scared of?"

"Myself."

Without a further word, Marie took the full mask she always had attached to her hip from its hooks, holding it out. It had corroded considerably.

"But, that wasn't like that a few hours ago..."

"No. I had a surge that actually caused me to keel over for a few minutes. When I came to, it had corroded. I don't know what'll happen when the mask breaks, but I don't want to know. Something in there, all of my wrath and rage, something is alive in there. And it terrifies me."

"How about this. First thing tomorrow, we'll make you another mask. What's this one made out of?"

"High-carbon steel."

"We'll get up, get some more steel if we need it and see if the forge has any openings, alright? We can get through this."

Marie sniffed and Mira cracked a smile.

"Wow, I didn't expect the one with phenomenal, unexplainable powers to be crying."

"They're not so phenomenal given my situation."

"Fair point."

The pair stood in silence for a few moments, Marie's sobs becoming quiet. She soon removed her arms from around Mira's waist and stepped back.

"So. What did you find?"

"That's the thing. I don't actually know. It was this big vehicle with a structure that must have been attached to it lying behind it. There was all sorts of weird stuff in there, like these."

Mira took the three wobbly statues she had picked up out of her back and placed them on the table. Marie raised a brow, flicking one and watching it wobble.

"Wobbly statues are weird?"

"No, but what are they statues of?"

"Good question."

"Also, there were these gold things, I don't know if they were a power source or something, but they powered up some computer on the ship."

"Like an AI?"

"Yeah, exactly. It then forced us to leave. Weird, isn't it?"

"Huh. I bet Shast wasn't too happy about that. He likes being the only one there, free to loot whatever he wants."

"Hah, that he does."

Mira focused on the statues again, idly wobbling each one as she inspected them.

"What are these statues of? This one-" she pointed to the top-heavy, turquoise one. "Looks like some sort of soldier, with two guns. That one looks downright evil, with that scythe. And I have no idea what this third one is."

"You know, whoever flew that ship may want to get their statues back."

"We could use them as bait?"

"Could do." Marie sighed deeply, removing her mask- the first one Mira had made- and pinching the bridge of her nose. "Tomorrow. I'm tired. You coming?"

Mira nodded after quickly checking the time, following Marie out of the kitchen.

* * *

A noise in the night caused Mira to awaken, frowning at the unscheduled interruption. She briefly assessed her surroundings, noting that she was still in bed, and that it was still dark outside- it could be any time. She then turned to the other occupant of the bed, wincing when she saw Marie tensing and twitching sporadically in her sleep. Mira wrapped her arms around her, quietly whispering to her.

"Hey... I'm here, it's okay, you're alright, I've got you..."

As she continued to whisper, comforting Marie, the Inkling's twitches became less frequent and less potent. Marie's breathing stopped momentarily before she gasped, a cloud of hissing darkness emerged from her mouth, drifting to the mask bearing a murderous expression and settling into it. Another small part of it corroded immediately- Mira watched it closely, just to assure herself that it wasn't going to suddenly snap and unleash what Marie was so terrified of. Eventually, she felt sleep taking her, the exertion of Shast's little expedition claiming her again and casting her into the void of sleep.

* * *

The following morning, as Mira hauled herself out of bed, she was caught off-guard by her phone suddenly ringing. Recovering quickly, she picked it up on the second ring so as to not disturb Marie, who was still sleeping. She walked out of the bedroom, quietly closing the door to conserve heat.

"Hello?"

"It's Raaz."

"Hello, Raaz."

"Yeah, good morning and all that, but listen, some flying thing followed me back last night. Zak saw it and it vanished before I could do anything. Did anything follow you back? I know you don't have powers like mine, but are you sure nothing followed you?"

"I'm fairly sure. Marie would've felt it if something did."

"Fair enough. I'm going to go check on Shast, just to be sure. He did touch the walls as well."

"Good idea. I would go with you, but I have a... An urgent matter to see to."

"I won't pry. See you around."

The line went dead, Raaz having hung up. Sighing, Mira ate breakfast, showered and got dressed, waiting for Marie to do the same. She watched as the afflicted Inkling carefully picked up the corroded mask and attached it to her clothing before moving to the cupboard. A glass box lay flush with the doors, an intricately detailed, magnificent mask propped up on a stand. It was made up of silver with golden details; leaves and flowing lines swirling about the eyes of the mask, and the words "In love, now, and forever" inscribed along the edge. A metallic veil hung around it. Marie opened the cupboard, deciding on which mask to wear for the day, quickly deciding on one of the more fancy ones, styled like the owls she had read about in old scrolls and books. She attached it and turned around, walking out of the room and towards the door, Mira quickly standing up to follow.

"So, where did you get the metal the first time?"

"The forge. I had it shaped there as well. Oh!"

Marie stopped, quickly ducking back into the apartment and returning with a working drawing of the metal mask.

"Almost forgot the working drawing. The guys at the forge can't make anything without these."

They headed out of the building, hand in hand and headed into the centre of Inkopolis. They cut through the plaza, taking one of the side streets and following it until they came across a doorway plastered with warning signs- extreme heat, flammable materials, machinery and a few more chemical signs had been nailed to the door, and there was another warning about eye protection on the frame. The sound of hammers striking metal pulsed from inside. Despite that, when Marie knocked on the door, the hammering stopped almost immediately, and footsteps came to the door and opened it- a wall of heat rolled out of the forge as a bearded Inkling appeared in the doorway. He was streaked with grime, his protective leather garments scorched in places. He wore a pair of goggles.

"Can I help you?"

Marie held up the working drawing. The blacksmith took it and inspected it.

"Do you want the original back?"

"Yes, please."

"One moment."

He disappeared, closing the door as he did so, coming back about a minute later and handing back the original copy of the working drawing.

"That'll be a deposit of ten-thousand, please. How quickly do you want it done?"

"As soon as possible, please."

"Make that fifteen-thousand then."

Marie held up a card, and the blacksmith pulled a reader from behind the door frame. She made her payment and the blacksmith stowed the card reader.

"Come back tomorrow, should be done by then."

"Thank you very much."

The door was closed in front of them, and a few moments later, the distinctive sound of metal being struck with hammers started anew. Mira and Marie walked away in silence, before the former remembered her call from that morning.

"Oh, Raaz said something followed him back from the ship. He wanted to know of you felt anything."

"I didn't feel a thing. Nothing followed us last night. However, the same cannot be said for today. Act normal. Something is watching us."

Mira took Marie's hand in her own.

"Any idea what?"

"No. I can't feel it in the normal sense, because I can't detect life signs, but I can feel... Something. Whatever it is, it's tall. Definitely not any sort of Inkling or Octarian."

"Well, let's go home. We have to wait for the forge to do your mask."

Marie caught on. She was making casual conversation in case anything was listening.

"Yeah. I could do with a rest after last night."

The pair super jumped, and as they cleared the rooftops, Marie caught a brief flicker of movement, something vanishing from sight.

* * *

 _That was too close._

Zantzi cringed, having been almost spotted- no, he was certain he had been spotted- when his two subjects took flight and arced away from him. His invisibility expired, and he dropped back into the visible spectrum. He sighed, the tracking systems in his Warframe placing the pair across town. Turning invisible once again, he leapt across the rooftops, hiding every time the timer of his invisibility reached zero. An apartment block loomed in the distance, his tracker telling him that his two targets were inside. He made note of the grid reference before placing a decoy on the roof, switching with it to scale the building and placed a second to hide the first from view on the ground. He crept to the edge, taking an acoustic sensor from his gear slots. It was a device of Ordis' design, a silver-blue bulb inside a thin cage hung from a highly conductive wire, tailored to pick up voices over everything else. He hung it just above the window, picking up a conversation almost immediately.

"...masks. Do you name any of them?"

"No. I've never really seen the point. I mean, I have our wedding mask, but the rest I just organise by casual or formal. Except for this one. This one is neither."

"What does it have in it?"

"At a guess? Hatred, bloodlust, rage... All bad things that would turn me into a murderous abomination if they took control."

"What about wrath?"

"Excuse me?"

"For a name. The mask of wrath."

"Well, I suppose it does make distinction between my collection easier..."

Zantzi would have listened for longer, but a siren suddenly blaring caused him to pocket the sensor and duck by the wall. He frowned when a small pink twister formed near one edge of the building, a yellow twister at the other side. He inhaled sharply and turned invisible when figures appeared in each one, each carrying a weapon of some sort- some guns, but also rollers and a brush. Zantzi frowned when a whistle went, before each of the figures began flinging ink. A pit opened in Zantzi's stomach.

"Oh, _joy_."


	5. Chapter 5

Panic began to set in as Zantzi watched the Inklings spraying ink in all directions, a wave of pink fast approaching him. He turned invisible and leapt away, squatting in a tree and trying not to move. He watched as one of the yellow Inklings dropped from the top of the building and flattened a brush-toting pink one under an enormous roller, the unfortunate latter exploding into a puddle of yellow. A focused beam of pink took out the roller, and the brush-carrying Inkling re-emerged from the ink, apparently unharmed. They ducked out of the way of a yellow signal, moving towards the tree, milliseconds before a missile hit the ground, a tornado forming and encroaching on Zantzi's hiding spot. Cringing, he bullet jumped away, the pressure wave inadvertently knocking over the brusher- they looked up, catching a glimpse of the yellow ink that had yet to be burned off by his shields. He quickly signalled, three more squid landing moments later. One travelled up the wall, mere centimetres from Zantzi.

"Hey!" He called. "Yellow! There's something else on the field!"

"Bullshark!" A feminine voice returned. "You think we'd fall for that?"

The pink boy threw his brush over the edge of the building to his team below.

"Better?"

Three yellow Inklings and an Octoling appeared, the Octoling stepping forward, similarly disarmed.

"Alright. What did you see?"

"Some tall creature thing. It had two legs, but it vanished."

"Aww, did you hear that, team? Pinky here has seen a ghost." Her team snickered.

"I did not! It was real!"

Throughout the conversation, Zantzi had been backing away, slowly placing his feet behind him and taking great care not to kick any loose dirt off the wall. The timer on his invisibility was getting dangerously low, but he was very close to the edge of the building. He placed a foot behind him, turned and leapt,

groaning as a shock travelled through the armour, stripping him of his energy and catapulting him onto his face. His invisibility wore off immediately after. The pink Inkling swept a hand towards him as the yellow yea recovered their weapons.

"See?"

Wasting no time, Zantzi threw the Inkling into the barrier, watching them explode into pink mist while simultaneously dropping an energy restore, turning invisible the moment he was able, a torrent of Ink just passing him by, the stray drops evaporating on his shields. Scowling, he waited for the rest of the energy restore to release its remaining energy before placing a decoy, watching with some amusement as the two teams went after it. When the Inklings were in range, Zantzi spun, unleashing his Radial Disarm, each of the Inklings' weapons wrenched out of their hands while a sickly sheen engulfed them. He immediately realised his mistake, checking his display, in the vain hope that he hadn't just irradiated the people he was trying to hide from. To his horror, he saw the Radial Disarm emblem superimposed on a trefoil, a sure sign that he had used an Irradiating Disarm. Looking down, he realised he was stood on a residential building. He checked his mods, his dread growing more and more as he saw the installed mods- Overextended, Stretch, Cunning Drift, for a total range of fifty-three metres.

"No..."

His invisibility expired, and the lead yellow Octoling doubled over in from of him, her tentacles writhing in agony as the radiation burned through her system, as it did the other Inklings on the battlefield. Zantzi couldn't look them in the eye, and he ran, the barrier having deactivated.

* * *

Inside the building, Marie frowned when four blue pulses passed through the ceiling.

"What the hell? Mira, did you see that?"

"Yep..."

The pair had no time to react when a single, blurry red pulse ripped through the building and vanished through the floor, and the pain was immediate. Mira cried out, collapsing to the floor in pain as the radiation took hold, and she dragged herself towards the bathroom, where Marie heard her throwing up. Marie herself was crouched, focussing all of her conscious effort on keeping her breathing steady. The sounds of Mira's sudden and extreme illness faded as her blood pulsed in her head, and she heard hundreds of voices whispering discordantly, slowly growing in volume as the pain grew. There was one voice that was louder than all of the others, and it sounded _furious_.

"It did this to you... Kill... Kill the alien... It has moved against you... Kill it..."

She swore she recognised the voice, but before she could identify it, it was drowned out by the rest, as an inhuman snarl built. Turning and looking at her hip, she saw the mask clipped there corroding, the tarnish covering it growing more intense. She collapsed, blacking out.

* * *

She came to outdoors, a drip in her arm and her mask no longer on her face. Carefully but quickly, she sat up, taking care not to move the drip as she reached out to her mask, which lay beside her. She reattached it just as a doctor walked past. Intermittent clicking filled the air.

"Oh good, you're awake. Maybe we'll be able to get somewhere now."

Looking around, Marie saw that she was but one person in a grid of unconscious Inklings, Octolings and other creatures. To her right was Mira, and Marie's breathing stopped when she saw how pale she was. Upon closer inspection, it looked as if she wasn't completely solid. The doctor knelt down beside her.

"If you don't mind me asking, can you remember what happened?"

Marie massaged her head with the arm that wasn't attached to a drip, her right arm.

"First of all, how long have I been out?"

"Responders found you about an hour ago. So at least that long, since they worked up the building systematically. In fact, we're amazed that you're up already. But more on that in a bit. What can you remember?"

Marie frowned as she thought back.

"I remember... The siren for the battle ground being prepared, then nothing abnormal for a while. Then, four blue pulses came through the ceiling."

"Was this the start of the... Problems?"

"No, these ones were utterly harmless. It was the fifth one that did me in."

"What did it look like? What did it feel like?"

Marie's frown deepened as she struggled to remember.

"It was... Brighter than the others, and was red. After that, it felt... It felt like thousands of needles were stabbing me all over."

"And that explains all of the acute radiation poisoning evident in the people around you. Again, we're surprised you're up already. Most of the people around you are not maintaining a humanoid form very easily, apart from those with skeletons."

"Don't you need to be protected if we've been irradiated?" Marie asked, gesturing to the doctor's scrubs. He wasn't even wearing gloves. "I mean, that won't stop anything."

"That's the weird part. Hazard teams have swept the apartments, and there is a Geiger counter sat right next to you, and everyone else here. Do you hear much clicking, aside from what you hear from background radiation? We have picked up no additional radiation, and none of the patients here are not radioactive. This is the single most bizarre case of mass injury we've come across, purely because there's no rational explanation how most of the people in a building and those battling on top of it could be irradiated with no trace of any isotopes or contamination."

Marie put her head down, sighing. She looked at Mira, and the rest of the patients.

"I'm a bit of a special case. Will the rest of these be alright?"

The doctor's face sunk.

"We don't know. For the Inklings and Octolings, it may just be a case of being unable to completely form for a while. However, others may have severe burns, and any large amount of radiation, no matter how quickly it passes, can cause ionisation, and you know what that leads to."

 _Cancers_. Marie shuddered.

"How long before I can get up?"

"Not now, and probably not for a few-"

"Hey. Special case. I can help out."

"Miss, I can't just-"

A second doctor ran up and whispered something in his ear. His eyes met Marie's.

"Someone is here to see you."

Taking care not to dislodge her drip, Marie stood up before the doctors had chance to bring a wheelchair over, cracking a cocky smirk and walking towards the two figures waiting for her. One was practically bouncing. As Marie crossed a yellow line, Callie darted forward and embraced her, dwarfing Marie in comparison.

"What happened?"

"No idea. Radiation or something."

Callie released her cousin, the two of them cringing as strands of green clung to her arms and front.

"Heh! It's like you're thirteen again."

"Shut up. I have no idea what actually happened."

"How's Mira?" Vytus asked.

Marie stepped aside and pointed. From this distance, the Octoling just looked as if they were sleeping. Marie knew better.

"I'm sure she'll be fine. Are you the only one up?"

"Yes." Marie pointed to the drip. "Special case. Still need this drip, apparently."

"Hmm, well I hope the rest of these people wake up soon." Callie mused. "What has this sort of power? I don't like it."

"Hey, how do you think we feel, having been on the receiving end of it?"

Callie would have continued, but she was interrupted by several ambulances pulling up. Doctors immediately emerged, loading on the unconscious patients. Marie smiled.

"I guess I'll be going to the hospital then. I'll see you soon."

"Yeah. Soon."

* * *

Vulture switched off the television, a hard glare boring into Zantzi. The ink-stained Tenno stood with his head bowed in shame.

"Half a building. Eighty people. You are extremely lucky that it was the middle of the day. I can't believe you were so stupid. But what can I expect from an android?"

"I wasn't expecting-"

"What you were _expecting_ is beside the point. What matters is that you irradiated eighty people. You know how much that is?"

"Two forties?" Aegis snarked from behind Vulture. He pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Time and a place, Aegis." He turned back to Zantzi. "Despite your poor decision making, we may as well use this distraction. With any luck, our target should be unguarded. Same as before, do whatever it was you did to pick up the Zapfish, and bring the target back here. Oh, and your Kubrow won't be able to go with you. Too much water."

Zantzi turned to leave, but was stopped by Vulture again.

"One more thing. Hurt any more innocents, and I will personally rip you apart."

Zantzi left the base, first running to his Liset. Vulture had had electrified fences put up to keep out any potential looters. The Tenno easily jumped over it, heading into the Orbiter. He noticed the power was out again. Shrugging, he picked the Itzal he had asked Ordis to repair off the Foundry table, clipping it onto his back and watching it link to his particular wavelength of Void Energy. It promptly disappeared. Sighing deeply, Zantzi stepped into the inventory station and removed Irradiating Disarm, replacing it with Handspring. He doubted he'd be able to bring himself to use his ability augment again any time soon. He then replaced his Hek with a Rakta Cernos, and his Lex Prime for the Hikou Prime. He left his Jat Kittage where it was; on his back.

Leaving the inventory station, he took out a Void Key and pressed it to the wall, a blue glow lighting the inside of the ship before a siren blared moments later. Ordis appeared.

"Operator! The power went out, and now I cannot detect the Somatic Link!"

Zantzi immediately ran to the back of the ship, the door to the Link hanging open. Sure enough, the pod where he lay was gone.

"Ordis, get a trace on that pod."

"It'll take a few hours, Operator."

"What? Why?"

"This room is bathed in Void energy of different wavelengths. I will have to find the right one."

"Ugh, fine! Just find that pod!"

* * *

The ground outside Shast's mansion rippled, the old man emerging, followed by Raaz. The former was rubbing his hands together and laughing triumphantly. As Raaz stood up, several black tentacles emerging from his body went taut, and he visibly strained to pull an enormous pod from the ground, strands of black dripping off it. Strangely, it was not corroded where the tar had been.

"Right then! Let's take it around the back and see what's inside! It has to be good, being locked up this tight."

Leaning on his knees, Raaz wiped the sweat from his forehead before straightening up, raising his arms. His tentacles strained again, and he slowly followed Shast around the back of his mansion, carefully setting down the pod with a heavy thud. The afflicted Inkling flopped onto his back, gasping. His tentacles were splayed around him, and they writhed with every breath he took. Shast looked at him disapprovingly.

"Stop being so dramatic. I know you don't have to breathe."

"Not...breathing." Raaz gasped. "Cooling... Down..."

"Hah! Well, whatever you say. Whenever you're ready, help me open this thing."

Shast vanished into a small shed, re-emerging with a hammer and chisel. Tracing a hand around a crease in the metal, he placed the chisel and struck it, the pod ringing mutedly.

"Hmm... Well it's not completely hollow."

He took a few pictures of the pod, climbing on top and making sure he had a picture from every angle. Raaz stood up, his muscles still aching, but despite the pain he still forced his tentacles into the crease, searching for any locking mechanisms or hinges. Each time he tried, his appendages were forced back by a strange energy.

"I can't force it open." He grumbled.

Shast rolled his eyes and brought out several cables, attaching them to the pod. Even just placing the two clamps in contact with the hull caused a dull whine to fill the air. The old Inkling taped the clamps to the hull before stepping back, frowning.

"Try now."

Raaz stepped forward before reconsidering.

"Not with a live circuit going through it."

"Feh. I almost got you."

Shast retrieved a rubber mat, giving it to Raaz to stand on while he prised at the crease again, to no avail.

"Damn thing's impenetrable."

The pair tried other methods to get inside, ranging from hammers, to saws and even a plasma cutter- all had no effect, and the only damage left over afterwards was a scorch mark from the cutter. The pair sat on the ground in front of the pod, a look of frustration on Shast's face. After a few minutes of silence, Raaz stood up, disconnecting the wires.

"Sod it." He announced. "I'll just go through it."

"Raaz! Wait!"

Paying the old man no attention, Raaz placed a hand on the pod, getting a feel for the material he was about to push his way through. His face warped into a look of extreme concentration as his hand slowly sunk into the metal, followed by his arm, and then his shoulder. Soon, his head was inside the pod, eyes adjusting to the soft glow inside. He gasped when he saw the figure lay inside the pod. Quickly weighing up his options, and seeing that nothing was pinning the humanoid down, Raaz extended some tentacles into the ground, securing himself and giving him an anchor with which to pull himself out of the pod easily. Looking again at the sleeping figure, he extended his limbs towards them.

* * *

Zantzi ran through the forest, heading back towards the mountain base, panic beginning to set in. There was not much that panicked him; of course, an impromptu assassin attack could be terrifying, and being disconnected from an Archwing while in flight was an experience he'd prefer not to repeat. But now? His existence was at risk, and he had no way of stopping it.

As he broke through the treeline, Aegis raised her fists, preempting any possible attack. She frowned when she saw the Tenno stood in front of her.

"Back so soon? I doubt you've been and done your mission that-"

"Listen to me. This is important." Aegis almost protested, but the desperation in the Tenno's voice caused her to hold her tongue. "In my ship, there was a pod. But the Inklings have taken it. I'm confident they won't get through it, but with the one that can go through the ground, I'm not so sure. You have _got_ to find it, otherwise they'll have access to an incredibly powerful-"

His words were cut off as his view faded, Aegis dashing forwards to catch the Warframe as it shut down, folding onto its knees.


	6. Chapter 6

Raaz groaned with the strain of pulling himself and a passenger through such a dense material, the tentacles he was using as anchors doing little to help him, only churning up the turf instead. When Shast saw Raaz's legs appear from the pod, he grabbed them and began pulling. It didn't make movement any easier, but Raaz appreciated the attempt. After pulling for several minutes, Raaz came loose of the pod, soon followed by his passenger. The second the humanoid left the pod, it opened. Raaz growled exhaustedly.

"Bloody... Typical..."

He pulled a bar of chocolate from his pocket and ate it, restoring some of his lost energy. Shast approached the being who had been in the pod, taking a few pictures. The figure was in a primarily white suit that covered their entire body, a dull red suit laying beneath the white armour. A metallic device was around their neck. Shast took picture of everything he could, from the hands, feet, body, and collar. He moved to the head, focussing the camera on one of the "eyes" of the helmet, and taking the picture. The flash lit it up, and before either Inkling had time to react, the helmet vanished, the boy's eyes inside snapped open and his entire body was lifted into the air by an unknown force. The boy curled up before straightening out, arms at his sides and eyes glowing with strange power. Shast was too old to have had any kind of chance of dodging the cone of energy that suspended him in the air, and neither did Raaz. The pair floated, hoisted by crimson energy, powerless to do nothing but watch as the figure fired three more pulses before collapsing onto his knees, the hood not reappearing. He looked up, and Shast tried to turn the camera towards him, taking a few photos, the flashes appearing to stun the pod-person. They tried to stand, falling over rapidly and instead settling for a sort of half-run, half-crawl, heading towards the gate that led to the front of the mansion and the rest of Inkopolis. Shast jerked his head from Raaz to the person, and he took the hint, extending his tentacles forward and ensnaring the person, they cried out in surprise, falling onto his front as the black appendages dragged him back by the legs. Raaz hoisted him into the air, watching them struggle for a few moments.

"Okay, now let us down."

Raaz could study his features now- he was definitely young, black, neck-length hair resting on the collar. Raaz could see streaks of red in there as well. The pod-person had a pale complexion, the gold of his eyes glowing ominously. Some sort of glasses were attached to his face- literally attached- and there were some nasty-looking burns there as well, the dark blemishes a stark contrast to the almost-white tone of his skin. It looked between Raaz and Shast.

"Well?" The afflicted Inkling said. "Are you going to let us down?"

"C-Can't." He said. His voice was definitely deeper than what Raaz was expecting for someone so young-looking.

"And why can't you do that?"

"I d-d-don't control it."

"So you control its release, but not its duration?"

The boy nodded. Raaz rolled his eyes.

"Great."

The trio floated in silence, Raaz glaring daggers at the strange boy, barely having time to catch Shast as he abruptly dropped to the ground. Moments later, he too dropped, making sure to maintain his grip on the boy. Raaz altered his grip to have them hang upright rather than upside down.

"Talk. Who are you?" Raaz growled, ever-so-slightly tightening the bindings around the Tenno's wrists. The boy struggled, and Shast's expression softened.

"Raaz, he's just a boy. Put him down."

"He's clearly not "just a boy", since he did whatever it was he did to suspend us both." He turned back to the Tenno. "Do you have a name?"

"Z-Zantzi."

"Right, now we're getting somewhere. Alright, were you the one who irradiated all of those people?"

Zantzi couldn't meet his gaze, and Raaz frowned.

"So you were the one who did it."

Raaz turned away, pulling his phone from his pocket and dialling a number, and barely a rig went past before the phone was picked up.

"Yeah? What is it, Raaz?"

"Hi, Marie. We've found the one responsible."

"Shame I can't be there. I haven't fully formed yet. I'm still a bit... Gooey. Not nearly as bad as the rest of the people affected thought. Keep him contained for now, I should be out of here by tomorrow."

"Shouldn't be too hard. The kid can barely walk."

"...kid?" Marie enquired.

"Look, it'll be easier to explain when you're here."

"If you say so. See you tomorrow. Shast's mansion, yeah?"

"Yeah."

Raaz put the phone away and began walking towards the house.

"Shast, you don't mind if our friend here takes one of the rooms for the night, do you?"

"Not at all. At least one of them should still be set up."

"Excellent."

Zantzi stayed silent as he was dragged inside the house, being led upstairs and placed in a room on his feet. He quickly fell to his knees and crawled towards the bed, hoisting himself onto it. Raaz looked on, bemused.

"What's the matter with your legs? Can't you use them?"

"No."

"Well, whatever. It makes you much easier to keep here that way."

Raaz extended his arms, veins of black spreading through the walls, ceiling and floor of the room, forming a web over the window and across the door.

"You touch these, I'll know. So don't do anything stupid."

He stepped outside and shut the door. Shast was stood outside.

"What a strange boy."

"Very strange."

* * *

In the darkness of the room, while the master of the mansion slept and the afflicted Inkling was most likely still outside, Zantzi was wide awake. Awake and thinking. He was confident his timid façade had worked to throw off the expectations of his captors, but knowing that he had already used a Void Pulse on them, there was a limit to how tame he could appear.

As he lay thinking, he searched across the city and surrounding area for his Warframe. Under normal circumstances, a Tenno would never even try to find a Warframe without the use of a Transference Pod, but these were hardly normal circumstances. And while it was difficult to hold a Transference without a pod, it wasn't impossible. In fact, he had done it when he had first awoken, but that had been a much more stressful time, filled with confusion, a vengeful Stalker and many, many Sentients. He had carried on purely through instinct. Consciously attempting to forge a Transference was a challenge at best. He could feel his Loki, but that was it. He could only feel it. He didn't have the mental strength to make contact with its systems and stand it up. Sighing, he allowed his head to hit the pillow, his eyes sliding shut momentarily. A pounding headache had formed, and he winced. He was quite unused to feeling pain in this body. Deciding that no further good could come of the day, he let his eyes shut again, and kept them closed until he fell asleep.

His sleep was not peaceful, instead, he slipped into a dream almost immediately, drifting down through his subconscious. He saw what he had seen; orange-lit corridors of Grineer Galleons, the featureless grey of Corpus structures, both corrupted by the Infestation. The images faded, replaced by the silver walls of his Clan's Dojo, the faces of those inside clear despite his unconscious state. He saw the hull breach that had fortunately failed to injure anyone, and the skill with which his team worked to close the gap. Those images soon faded too, a golden glow growing beneath him- the Orokin Void. It was not silent, as it usually was, but instead it was filled with inhuman wheezing, the odd language of the Corrupted almost deafening. The glow faded moments- hours?- later, and he soon drifted down onto a pale circle of light. He stood up, marveling at the feeling of balance without his armour. All was silent again.

"Hello?" he called, his voice muffled, as if it were underwater, yet still somehow managing to echo. It reverberated, growing in volume until it was suddenly silenced- a faint voice audible somewhere around him, its words lost in the black space. Zantzi felt himself rising through the dream, losing the voice, back through all of the memories, and into true unconsciousness.

* * *

"So you say he just... Collapsed?"

"Pretty much. He was in a panic about some pod the Inklings took from his ship."

"How... Odd."

"I don't think he's telling us everything."

"If he was, he'd be a fool. Everyone keeps secrets, dear."

"Heh, no kidding."

"Keep the armour in here. Not sure what we're going to do with regards the rescue, though. I'd send the scavengers, but they're busy rewiring Zantzi's ship."

"If Zantzi is out of commission, then his ship is not a priority anymore. And I'm not sending any of our defenders. We're stretched thin as it is." Aegis sighed.

"There's a lot riding on us. I know Zantzi is an asset, but without Octavio, those blast doors are never opening."

Vulture stood up and embraced Aegis.

"I know it's hard, but we're almost done. I'll send the scavengers in Zantzi's place. We can free the others, and then... Well, you know what happens next."

"Oh, that part of the plan hasn't changed. Not ever. I'm going to enjoy that."

"Heh." Vulture pulled a communicator out of his pocket. "Scavengers, you've been reassigned. We're going after Octavio in Zantzi's place. Meet me outside in ten."

Vulture smirked and hugged Aegis again, before running outside to prepare.

* * *

When Zantzi awoke, he screeched and recoiled when he saw an eyeless face inches away from his own, pushing himself backwards as best he could on his weakened limbs, pressing himself against the wall. The eyeless Inkling straightened up, placing a half mask over her eyes, turning away and rummaging through a bag resting by her feet.

"Where are they...? Where are the knives..."

She pulled a blade from the bag, tossing it between her hands. Zantzi swallowed nervously.

"C-can I h-help you?"

"Yes, actually. You can. Although not very much." She approached, the knife firmly in her grip. The Tenno stared at it nervously. Despite it being nothing but a large kitchen knife, size didn't matter since he was not wearing any form of armour. His face was exposed, as was the top of his neck. Not that the Transference Suit offered much protection either- he was sure a knife would go straight through it. This girl could easily kill him at a moment's notice.

"My name's Marie. And you were on top of our apartment the other day. Well, not you specifically. A set of armour. You and that armour, you have the same soul. That means one of two things. You are a clone, or you are the same person. Which is it?"

Zantzi remained silent, unsure as to whether he should answer. Marie frowned after a few seconds.

"Oh dear."

She stepped forward, raising the knife. Zantzi threw his arms up.

"Wait! It's the second one!"

Marie stopped and lowered her arm.

"So you and the armour are the same person. That makes you directly to blame for irradiating eighty people. Sound familiar?"

Zantzi looked away, unable to meet Marie's gaze. She tossed the knife between her hands impatiently.

"Well? Are you to blame?"

"...yes." He mumbled.

"Speak up."

"Yes. I did it. I accidentally irradiated eighty people."

Marie smiled sweetly. The expression unsettled Zantzi. It didn't look right without being able to see her eyes- did she even have any?

 _Surely she does_. Zantzi thought. _I must have imagined her not having any._

He snapped back to attention when the knife was suddenly embedded in the wall, vibrating rapidly. He looked at Marie, whose leering grin had been replaced with a casual smirk.

"So, how do you do it? How do you get your soul inside that armour? My guess is that it has something to do with that pod outside. Oh, and I have plenty of knives."

Zantzi swallowed nervously again.

"T-transference."

"And that works... How?"

"I sit inside the pod, and I send my soul to the armour."

"Hmm. Interesting. And if you're killed while in the pod?"

"The soul cannot persist without a body. It binds to the armour."

"What if the armour is killed?"

"Armour is armour, it doesn't die."

Another knife thudded as it was buried point-first in the wall, a lock of hair drifting to the bed's surface.

"Fine. What if the armour is destroyed?"

Zantzi stared at the second knife. He hadn't even seen Marie move.

"The soul returns to my body."

"Hmm..." Marie hummed, considering the information. "What if... The armour was destroyed after the body had been killed?"

"Well... The soul would perish."

"You sound very hard to kill."

"That's the idea of-" he stopped as a third knife hit the wall, pinning the Transference suit to it by the underarm.

"So if we kept you and the pod here, then we control your armour on pain of death, alright?"

A faint sound of whooshing caught Zantzi's attention; it sounded much like a retrieval teleport. Moments later, the Inkling with strange powers phased through the door.

"The pod just vanished."

Zantzi held his hands up, completely innocent. Marie growled.

"What did you do?" She whirled on him, a knife in each hand.

"Nothing! I did nothing!" He noticed a green circle appear on his glove. "But, I just remembered something."

"Talk."

"Warframes all have retrieval teleporters once their revival units fail and a mission is deemed too damaging. So do I."

He slammed his left hand on top of his right, unimaginable pain ripping through him as he vanished from the room, the murderous grimace of Marie darting forward the last thing he saw before his vision flashed teal and he dropped to the floor in his Liset, startling Maxie. He licked his face affectionately. He couldn't feel it due to the shock of being shunted through space.

"Hey boy."

Zantzi went to pet him, but found himself unable to move his hands. Looking down, he grimaced as the numbness faded and the pain hit him. One of Marie's knives had found their mark just as he vanished, and his hands were pinned together at the palms.

"Operator! You're hurt!"

"N-nothing a Health Restore won't fix."

"All Restores are currently equipped on your Loki."

"Then build a Restore now."

The Foundry activated, and while Zantzi waited, he spoke.

"Ordis, do you know the co-ordinates for the mountain base?"

"Yes, Operator. Why?"

"Because at least one Inkling knows we're here, and he can travel through solid surfaces."

"Would you like me to teleport you there?"

"And the Transference Pod."

"Very well. I shall prepare shortly, once you are healed."

The Health Restore was completed moments later, and the Foundry's armature placed it on the ground. Zantzi whistled at Maxie.

"Alright, I need you to pull this thing out, alright?"

Maxie panted before clamping his jaws around the handle of the knife.

"Three... Two... One... Now!"

Zantzi pulled his hands back as Maxie yanked the blade out of his hands, and the Tenno screamed in pain. Maxie then stood on the Health Restore, a green pulse erupting from it. The relief was instant- immediately the pain stopped, replaced by a comfortable warmth along the edges of the holes. Flesh, sinew and muscle regrew, the holes closing and leaving ugly scars which also faded as the remaining pulses radiated from the Restore. Zantzi shook his hands, repeatedly clenching them to ensure he was at full dexterity before he began to crawl towards the Somatic Link, speaking to Ordis as he went.

"Teleport both me and the pod. Once I get inside, you can get a lock on my Warframe."

"I KNOW WHAT I- of course, Operator."

Maxie soon whimpered curtly and trotted towards Zantzi, taking of the collar of the Transference Suit and dragging him towards the Link. The Tenno just laughed.

"Heh, thanks, Maxie."

His ears twitched in approval. The quadruped hauled Zantzi towards the pod, at which point Maxie let go, allowing the Tenno to climb into his pod of his own accord. It closed around him, the hum of the ancient machinery rising in pitch and volume.

"Somatic Link, sealed." A rush of air accompanied Ordis' voice. "Life support active. Initiating Transference. I will see you momentarily, Operator."

Familiar forces tugged a Zantzi's mind as the Transference began, his vision fading to white as the energy inside the pod charged the air and sustained him. He whited out, a roar of energy filling his ears with white noise as his soul was forced through space and into the dormant Loki.


	7. Chapter 7

Aegis leant back in the chair, sighing and rubbing her temples. Stacked on the desk in front of her were several maps, all of them marked with notes and arrows. In front of the desk sat the Tenno's armour, on its knees and completely inert. Aegis was completely focused on the map, tracing one of the lines with her finger while she clutched a radio in her other hand, another finger flicking the transmit button nervously. Every now and then, a burst of static preceded a short message, call signs whispered across the airwaves as each of the scavengers, led by Vulture himself, checked in. Aegis had faith in their abilities, but breaking into a heavily-guarded prison was a dangerous task for anyone, as such an infiltration was grounds for detainment and a fine. It was more dangerous for Octolings, as the prison held many war criminals, most of whom were Octarian. For them, if they were suspected of trying to free said criminals, the punishment would be life imprisonment alongside their predecessors.

"Hold." Vulture's voice came through the radio. "Establishing visual link. Aegis? Can you see?"

The television flickered into life, showing the view from Vulture's shoulder. In the distance, across an expanse clear of trees or other life that would allow for cover was a well-lit and foreboding building, wreathed in barbed wire and covered in spotlights, sweeping across the field in a predictable pattern.

"I don't suppose there's a way for you to shut the lights off from there, is there?"

"Nope. The prison runs on a closed system. Computers can only be accessed from inside. Backup generators can sustain the building for about two weeks, and they have enough food, water and gas stored to last that long with all of the prisoners in perfect condition."

Searchlights swept across the field again. While the pattern was predictable, it was very fast- there was no path through the light that would certainly get them imprisoned.

"Aegis, this isn't happening. There's no way to get through unless we're invisible. We need Zantzi for this."

In the base, Aegis had no time to react as Zantzi's armour suddenly rose into the air, crouching into a ball before straightening, a pulse of energy knocking her flat on her back. Vulture winced as Aegis yelped down the microphone.

"Aegis? Speak to me! Are you alright?"

"Yeah, I'm fine. Zantzi just woke up." She looked at the Tenno, who looked back, confused. "Finally stopped sleeping on the job? You have a mission. Find Vulture and take it from there."

* * *

Less than an hour later, Zantzi was stood behind Vulture and his scavengers. He had been briefed on the path into the prison, and which cell his target was in. He had not been told _who_ exactly his target was- he had been told that the information would mean nothing to him. He had retreated into the trees at first so that the dense wood would hide the blue pulses of Energy Restores. He stood next to Vulture as he explained security inside.

"From what we understand, the prison is made up of four corridors, all leading to a central plaza. That plaza acts as the only way in or out for prisoners by way of helicopter. There are blast doors at the other end of each corridor, but they only open with the fire alarm. Corridors are low and flat, and are apparently completely featureless. There are no places to hide inside. This place has a reputation for being completely inescapable. Not one surface inside can be inked, not that that matters to you. Each cell is soundproof and most doors are electrified. You will need to find a way to get through the doors in there."

"Shouldn't be a problem. I'm a pretty good hacker."

"If you say so. Now, if something goes wrong and you do set off the alarms, you're going to have a bad time. When you got caught in that turf war, what weapons were the fighters using?"

"Some sort of paint gun?"

"Paint guns, sure let's go with that. In there, they will have tasers and water hoses. The guards have insulated armour, you get what I'm saying?"

"They'll soak and then shock me."

"Yes. So don't set off the alarms."

"Alright, so find cell Gamma-B-12 and bring back the prisoner."

"Gamma block is the closest block, and B is the second corridor in. Cell twelve speaks for itself. You ready?"

"Ready."

Zantzi stood at the treeline, waiting for the outermost searchlight to pass him by before running forward, making a scant few metres headway before he was forced to turn invisible.

 _Looks like the Grineer could learn a thing or two from this sort of security._

Reaching the wall with thirteen seconds to spare, he began to hop up, reaching the roof and narrowly avoiding a guard. As the Tenno passed him by, he saw a Gamma symbol on the guards' uniform.

 _Right block, then._

He renewed his invisibility before dropping down into the plaza, allowing himself about eighteen seconds to figure out how to get to the cell in time. Vulture's information was spot-on- there were no features in any of the corridors, and each wall had several lenses on it- cameras, most likely. Guards stood at each corner, one guard for each direction. There was no way he could hide once his invisibility ran out. Humming in frustration, he backed out, renewing his invisibility again.

"Vulture, is there any computer access anywhere in the facility?"

"I don't know. If there's that many cameras in there, there must be a control room somewhere."

After resetting his invisibility again, Zantzi sprinted to the end of the corridor, towards the blast doors. Above the doors, attached to the wall, was a small pod. He tensed up as a siren sounded, the pod opening with a pneumatic hiss and a bridge extending from a door. An Inkling emerged from the pod, stretching their arms before saluting another that emerged from the door; that one approached the pod. Thinking fast, Zantzi leapt up the wall, looking inside the pod. It appeared to be some sort of miniature control room. Quickly locating a panel, Zantzi pushed a drive into an open port and allowed Ordis access to the systems, snatching his hand away as the pod closed with the new Inkling inside of it.

"Ordis? Any ideas to move the guards? I have seven seconds."

"I can open one of the other cells, Operator. Each has a siren attached."

"Do it."

A siren almost immediately started blaring, several guards looking up in surprise before moving.

"Open two others."

Two more sirens began ringing out, and the guards distributed themselves between them, leaving a few guards left to turn between each corridor. Confident that Ordis had hidden him to the cameras, Zantzi times a jump so that he landed behind a guard before renewing his invisibility again, heading for Gamma-B-12. He stood above a trapdoor. Looking down the corridor again, the Tenno realised that all the cells were in fact oubliettes.

"Ordis, open Gamma-B-12."

Another siren rang, and Zantzi slipped inside, the cell's inhabitant looking up at the sudden light curiously. He was an older looking man, the sclera of his eyes a brilliant green glinting in the darkness. He was tall, with flecks of grey covering his body. Wasting no further time for inspection, Zantzi swept his legs out from underneath him, quickly capturing him before anyone else inspected the cell. It didn't take long- barely had Zantzi renewed his invisibility before a camera on a wire dropped into the cell; Zantzi climbed past it, running towards the plaza. A different siren rang out when the cell was discovered empty. The doors leading to the plaza began to close. Deciding that he wouldn't make it Zantzi threw a Decoy and switch teleported with it, ending up outside. He was by no means free yet- the plaza was rapidly being closed off.

"Ordis?"

"I can't stop it! It requires biometric scanning to override."

Raising an arm and aiming with his thumb, Zantzi placed a decoy on the closing roof, switch teleporting with it. He stumbled as his shields were assaulted by an electric current, the wet steel beneath him sparking as the Inklings held their stun batons to the surface of the roof. Crouching, Zantzi prepared to jump, but a strike from one of the guards hit him much harder than he was expecting- he was propelled onto his back, his shields dangerously low. Rolling to his feet, Zantzi opted for a flat-out sprint for the edge of the roof, only for enormous plates to extend upwards, effectively caging the prison in. He began to wall hop, his shields giving out halfway up. His armour almost gave out when taser probes slammed into his back, and he was yanked off the wall when the wires were pulled. He crashed to the ground, his Warframe's health now dangerously low, and was killed when a guard struck him with a baton.

Zantzi growled with frustration inside his pod, burning one of his revive units- his second one, as the first had not recharged- and knocked his attackers down. The probes from the taser removed, Zantzi threw himself up the wall again, collapsing onto the ground and turning invisible, sprinting towards the treeline. In the safety of the trees, he doubled over, groaning. Vulture looked down at him.

"Did you get the target?"

"Yeah."

"How was it?"

"Brutal. The freaks actually killed me."

"Details later. Let's get back for now."

* * *

"You want a case for that?"

"No thanks, I'll take it by hand."

"One hundred and five thousand, please."

Marie flashed her card, and the blacksmith vanished into the workshop, returning with a card reader. The transaction soon completed, Marie took her mask and attached it to her hip, thanked the blacksmith and super jumped away, landing on the roof of the apartment. Neglecting to use the door, she simply phased through the room, surprising Mira, who was stood in the kitchen, stirring the contents of a mug steadily.

"There is a door, you know."

"I couldn't be bothered, I'm too tired." As if to illustrate her point, she yawned. "I'm going to bed."

"Alright then."

Within ten minutes, Marie was curled up under the covers. She normally slept soundly, but recently, as she slipped into the realm of sleep, she heard voices. Usually they were nothing more than whispers of conversations she had had that day, or the day before, but she had soon begun to hear voices she didn't recognise. Those that she didn't recognise did not converse with each other or her, but rather spoke as if no-one was there to listen. They sounded hopelessly confused, as if they didn't know where they were. Such voices had woken Marie several times, forcing her to question her mental state. She never heard them when she was alert- it was alway when she was tired, or not paying attention, or when she was very, very angry, much like the other day when she had woken up semi-solid after being irradiated. Warlike voices had shrieked with rage, begging her to find and dispose of the perpetrator in horrifically creative ways. She shut them out- she was not a killer.

Marie had no idea what the voices were, and the idea puzzled her the next day. A feeling of dread gnawed at her, as if her own subconscious was warding her against the truth, but again, she ignored it.

 _I'll figure it out_. she reassured herself. _One day, I'll know, I'll know what these voices mean._

* * *

"You want me to put it here?"

"Just here, yes."

Zantzi extended his hand, orange light spilling out of his palm and forming particles. The pinpricks of light swarmed into the shape of a body before solidifying, the humanoid clenching his hands and feet before turning over, forcing himself to his knees and rocking back onto his heels. A low laugh emanated from his throat, building until it stopped, turning into a hacking cough. The man brought a hand to his mouth, retching into it and taking deep, steadying breaths. A small device was in his hand when he moved it away.

"I apologise." Zantzi said. "The capture process is a little rough."

"Vulture... You actually did it. You actually managed to free me from that awful place."

"Oh, no. You have it wrong." The Octoling said. "Aegis came up with the plan, and it was Zantzi here who freed you, Octavio."

Octavio stood up, steadying himself on the desk. In the well-lit office, Zantzi could get a better look at the man. He was thin, most likely from the harsh conditions of the prison, but while his frame was aged and breath ragged, Octavio had a certain sharpness to his gaze that suggested that he was not at all what he seemed.

"I have spent too many years cooped up in Hades. You have no idea how good it is to be in relatively fresh air." Octavio took a deep breath, stretching his arms. "That place is every bit as bad as it sounds. Recycled air, electricity everywhere, shift binding... They robbed me of by other form."

"I'm sure you can adapt to that, Octavio."

"I'm sure I can. Now, there's a question. Why have you freed me specifically, and not say, Atra of the Blue Ring. She is a much more capable fighter than I am. If its war you want, then I'll oblige."

"Actually, it's not." Aegis spoke up. "We-" she pointed to herself and Vulture. "Are two of the few who managed to get out of the super deep Octospheres. Some automated system failure caused the place to go into lockdown, and only a few escaped. And you're the only person who can lift that lockdown."

"I see..." Octavio said. "I'll oblige. There is one thing I want, a selfish request. Where is Cuttlefish?"

Aegis looked at Vulture. The latter swallowed nervously. Zantzi tilted his head in confusion. Octavio looked between the two Octolings expectantly.

"Octavio... Cuttlefish..." Aegis started.

"Cuttlefish was killed ten years ago by the Blue Ring." Vulture finished.

Octavio fell silent, and Vulture suddenly found the room far too warm for his liking. The uncomfortable neutral expression Octavio's face fell to made Vulture want to leave. No-one in the room breathed until at last, Octavio spoke.

"I see. Well consider my earlier statement void. And if you do, in a fit of madness, decide to rescue Atra from Hades prison, I will see to it that she dies screaming by my hands. Now, to business. Where about is the super deep colony?"

Vulture let out a breath he had been holding, and Aegis did the same. Zantzi again looked confused.

"R-right. Of course. I'll show you on the map..."

"Hey, Zantzi."

The Tenno looked down at Vulture.

"Go take a rest. You've earned it today."

"There's just one thing I need to do. Are there any large rooms in the mountain?"

"Yes... Why?"

"Remember I mentioned the Inklings taking something from my ship?"

"Yes?"

"I need a place to hide it."

"In that case... Aegis, I'll be a few minutes. I'm just helping Zantzi with something."

"Sure."

"Follow me."

Vulture led Zantzi through the winding corridors of the mountain, heading further under the ground.

"These lower levels are for storage. Obviously there's not much here, since there's not many of us."

"But then you need somewhere for the residents of the super deep to go. That's why you have so many residential areas."

"Right you are. And thus, storage for their things, if needed. Is here big enough?"

The Tenno stepped into the chamber, quickly estimating its size. He nodded.

"Stand back. Ordis, send it."

Vulture backed away, shortly followed by Zantzi. He frowned when nothing happened at first. Then, his eyes widened as space began to bend, pale light filling the room as the warping intensified, a vacuum quickly forming as the Void opened in front of them, a large, metallic object quickly plugging the rift and preventing more air from being sucked away. Vulture composed himself and raised a brow, attempting to approach the pod. Zantzi held up an arm.

"Don't. If you take another step, Void energy will rip you apart."

Vulture squinted, looking closer at the pod and the space around it- he caught flickers of something writing around the pod, dark strands coiling and extending as the energy dissipated. The energy soon disappeared completely, returning to the Void before the schism closed with an ethereal crack. Zantzi stepped forward, inspecting for damage.

"Excellent work, Ordis, not a scratch."

"DID YOU EXPECT ME TO- oh, no, don't mention it."

Vulture also approached the pod, tapping its surface.

"So this is what you were protecting. If you don't mind me asking, what's inside?"

"Everything I am. It's my back-up." Zantzi lied.

"Hm." Vulture snorted. "Alright. Now cut the crap. If there's one thing I can't stand, its traitors, followed closely by liars. Currently you are the latter, because last time we checked, you are completely hollow. An empty set of armour being driven by nothingness just doesn't check out. So I'll ask again. What's inside? Clearly it's a big deal since you were in an awful hurry to get it back from the Inklings."

Zantzi was considering his options. On one hand, he could just open the pod and show Vulture his true form. It would be easy, but it'd put Zantzi at risk. He could kill the Octoling, but that would cause more trouble than it was worth. Groaning, Zantzi placed a hand on the pod and allowed his soul to enter his body, the mechanism on the pod hissing as it opened. The Loki fell to its knees again, and Zantzi stared at Vulture from the pod.

"Like I said. This pod contains everything I am. And I have some explaining to do."


	8. Chapter 8

**Reviews:**

 **dragarag452: What indeed? Well, why don't you scroll down?**

 **kingtails97: You... like Atra as a character? That is... surprising. Well, I haven't killed her off yet: only the dead can know solace from my petty whims as a writer.**

* * *

As Zantzi slept, he found himself falling again, falling through his memories and into the abyss, where again he stood alone in the dark. There were voices again, and while they were still muffled and distant, they were clearer than last time. He could make out two voices.

"He's sleeping."

"Are we any closer?"

"Considerably."

They sounded so familiar...

"He can hear us, right?"

"Hold on, he's noticed us. Zantzi? Can you hear us?"

The Tenno tried to speak, but the dream would not let him- the words were lost before they even left his mouth.

"I'm losing him, he's waking up."

"Zantzi! We're trying to reach you. Remember us. My name is..."

The final word was lost as the dream collapsed, and the Tenno's eyes slid open. He was in his Transference Pod, his Loki sat inert in front of him. In front of that stood Aegis, who looked irate. She was stood with her arms crossed, a look of extreme boredom bordering on anger on her face. She had already been filled in on his true nature, courtesy of Vulture.

"You're finally awake. Follow me, and don't bring the armour."

"Uh, that may be a problem."

"Listen kid, we're not going to any of the other levels, so you don't have an excuse unless you can't walk." When Zantzi didn't answer, Aegis narrowed her eyes and smirked. "Oh my. Well. Well well. That's shocking. You can't actually walk, can you?"

When Zantzi refused to meet her gaze or answer her question, she burst out laughing, doubling over and leaning on her knees while she got her breath back.

"Oh my... The badass war machine with guns bigger than we are is just a kid who can't walk! We can't have that."

She stepped forward and hauled Zantzi out of his pod, ignoring his protests and displaying impressive strength as she threw him over her shoulder. His attempts to overbalance her failed, and he quickly resigned himself to the carry, simply watching the chiselled corridor stretch into the distance. Aegis turned sharply into another room.

"Vulture!" She bellowed. "The kid can't walk."

Zantzi was set down, and he rotated himself so that he could see the rest of the room. Vulture and Octavio were organising supplies into bags. Zantzi saw bottles of a clear fluid, food bars and metallic blankets. Vulture frowned. Octavio stared at the Tenno.

"You can't walk?"

Zantzi shook his head, burning with embarrassment.

"We'll have to change that, and quickly. Aegis, lift him up by the arms."

Aegis gave Zantzi no time to prepare before she placed a hand on each of his arms and lifting him straight upwards, his legs dangling freely beneath him.

"Now set him down slowly."

Zantzi's feet hit the floor, and as soon he was not completely supported by Aegis, his legs began to shake. He would have collapsed if the Octoling didn't suddenly lifted him again. Vulture rolled his eyes.

"Alright, every day, to the best of your ability, exercise your legs, and weigh them down as you train up. Pretty much all you have to do is sit on the edge of something and repeatedly extend your legs until they're strong enough to support you, okay? Then just walk as much as possible to build up endurance."

Zantzi nodded and Vulture smiled. Octavio continued to stare.

"Now, the three of us are off for a few days while we unlock the super deep colony. It'll take about a day to get there, and obviously it'll take longer to get back because we don't know the condition of those inside. In that time, you are going to be in charge of the base. The Aegis' defenders have their orders and my scavengers are on guard rotation. You can requisition them to do various tasks, within reason." He punctuated the last part with a glare. "Other than that, you're on your own. Try not to give our position away, will you?"

"Alright."

"Good."

Vulture returned to packing gel bottles and food bars into his bag, as did Octavio. Aegis was fitting what she could around the blankets in her bag. Zantzi picked up one of the bottles, inspecting the liquid inside. It _looked_ like water, but it felt heavier, denser. Aegis saw his confusion.

"Inklings and Octolings can't have water, since it causes us to dissociate. Instead we have this stuff, chroma gel. It changes to match the colour of the first person to come into skin contact with it. We can't spare any bottles to show you, so don't you dare open that."

Her words were laced with unrestrained threat, so the Tenno carefully put the bottle down and rolled it over to her. Over time, the large pile of food and drink diminished as the bags were filled, and the trio were soon shrugging them onto their backs, tightening the straps around their shoulders, chests and midsections. Aegis hoisted Zantzi by the back of his collar, carrying back into his room and almost throwing him into his Transference pod.

"Don't forget to train. We want to see you walking when we get back."

Zantzi nodded and Aegis smirked.

"Oh, and if you're not walking..." An unsettling grin overtook her features. "You are really not going to like what happens."

The grin faded, immediately replaced by an innocent smile. She left the room with a prolonged "bye", the sound of her and her cohorts' footsteps diminishing as they walked away. Zantzi swallowed nervously.

 _Well then._ he thought. _Looks like I need to get walking._

* * *

The ground outside the Orbiter blackened as Raaz emerged from it, shaking off flecks of black tar as he solidified. A backpack was firmly attached to his back. Looking around to ensure that no-one was watching him from the edge of the crater, he stepped into the sundered vehicle, accustoming himself to the unnatural angle at which the floor sat. Seeing that the computer was not online, he kicked the wall. The effect was immediate- a mass of cubes projected itself from the corner of the room, vibrating irately.

"FISH FREAK- Ordis told you to leave."

"And I was quite happy to stay away, had I not found something of yours watching me and my little brother."

Raaz took the bag from his shoulders and pulled out the Shade sentinel. It shuddered, trying to escape his grasp. Raaz formed his fingers into blades, the tips just digging into the sentinel's carapace.

"Those are expensive, freak."

"Are they?" Raaz asked, tilting his head to the side. "That's a shame."

His claws pierced the carapace, and the sentinel exploded, the parts scattering across the floor. Ordis twitched.

"Stay the hell away from my brother, or hell is exactly what you're going to get."

Raaz sank through the floor, grabbing the backpack he dropped just before he vanished completely. Ordis twitched again, a mechanical arm beginning to sweep up the sentinel parts.

"...filthy."

* * *

Zantzi sat in his Transference pod, getting ready to possess his Loki again. The pod closed, hissing filling the air as the pod was sealed prior to his Transference. A flash of light signalled the beginning of the process, followed by the temporary disorientation as the Loki's systems were surged. When his vision did not clear, he realised there was something in front of his "eyes". Picking it off, he realised it was a note.

 _Don't forget: bad times ahead if you don't learn to walk..._

Groaning, Zantzi placed the note on the floor by the pod before leaving the room. He climbed the base to the top office, contemplating what he could do in the time he had between now and when Vulture, Aegis and Octavio returned with the residents of the super deep colony. He went to sit down in the chair, only to find that it was far too small to support him. He opted to float cross-legged behind the desk.

 _We have enough Zapfish, the super deep's being taken care of..._

Picking up the radio, the Warframe thought about what to do.

 _I could start repairing my Orbiter..._

Deciding not to requisition the scavengers, Zantzi began the short walk to his downed Orbiter, the fires having burned out long ago, leaving a charred wasteland of grey soil and blackened trees around the crash site. Keeping his armour clean was not an issue, as long as his shields remained active; any dirt and grime simply slid off the energetic barrier. Climbing inside the Orbiter, the first thing Zantzi saw was the mess- many mechanical parts were strewn across the floor, many of them charred. Ordis' arm was sweeping them up.

"What happened?"

"A filthy fish freak destroyed your Shade."

Ordis' voice did not glitch or waver- he was completely lucid and sounded furious. Zantzi sighed, shaking his head.

"That's going to cost me. And Ordis, please tone down on the slurs. Our friends also happen to be so-called fish freaks."

"Ordis makes no promises."

"To take your mind off things, I have decided that we will make this place space-worthy again. You've fixed the floor alright, and storage, and Maxie's vitals seem fine in stasis, as do my other Kubrows. But how's the circuitry?"

Zantzi had placed Maxie back in stasis following his embarrassing talk-down at Vulture's hands- he did not want to be guilt-tripped again.

"Circuitry is mostly intact- most things that should work do work. However, please direct your attention to the Liset."

Ordis disappeared from the foundry. Catching the hint, Zantzi moved into his landing craft, seeing the panel covering the data banks removed.

"The data banks were damaged in the crash. It appears that a piece of shrapnel pierced through two of the drives."

"Which drives?"

"Scanning and Navigation, Operator."

"Shit."

"Operator?"

"If Nav's gone, we can't just launch off this planet. If we end up back in the Void with no form of navigation, we could end up anywhere, perhaps even outside the Origin System, and we'd be torn apart by Sentients."

"Operator, if I remember correctly, you and the rest of your clanmates have back-ups of your systems in the Dojo's mainframe."

"But we can't get there."

"I'm sure the collective ingenuity of the Crimson Hammer can-"

"We are worlds apart, Ordis." Zantzi paused. "Actually, you may be onto something. How much Void energy remains in the Somatic Link?"

Ordis clicked for a few seconds.

"Approximately 500 clicks, Operator."

"That should be enough for what I have in mind."

Zantzi made his way through the ship again, into the Orbiter and back towards the Somatic Link.

"Operator, what do you have in mind?"

"The mind is what I have in mind. Ozara spends almost all of her time in a Nyx Warframe, doesn't she?"

Zantzi entered a meditative pose, floating in the Link as tendrils of energy writhed around the room.

"Time dilation being as it is, I don't know how long this will take. Keep an eye on things, Ordis."

"Of course."

Zantzi closed his eyes, breathing deeply. Slowly, the faint sounds of the outside world and Ordis' work faded, leaving the Tenno floating in a dark void of silence. Almost immediately, he heard another voice.

"I can feel him again. It's different, he's awake."

"Awake? But... He must be meditating."

In the silence, Zantzi thought _"Correct."_ Silence followed his affirmation.

"...was that a response?"

"Yes. Zantzi? My name is Ozara. Do you remember me?"

"Yes."

"Great, you're definitely not dreaming, and I'm not screwing around with you. Where are you? One minute you were flying in the Void, and the next you dropped off the map!"

"I don't know. I crashed on a planet, and my Scanning drive was destroyed, as was Navigation."

"A planet in the Void?"

"Not in the Void. I have no idea what happened."

"What can you tell us about the planet you're on?"

"At a guess? Earth-like gravity, Earth-like size, breathable atmosphere for Oxygen-breathing life forms, and there's intelligent life here."

"I'll spare you Ruben's interrogation, you'll be here for hours. Take notes on them and bring them when you eventually get back."

"About that, I have a plan. Can you fire me a back-up Nav drive on a resupply pod?"

"Not without knowing your exact location."

"Shit."

"...you know, I'd appreciate it if you didn't think about stuff like that. I can see it, you know."

"Sorry. How are things at the Dojo?"

"Not much different? Not a lot changes in ten minutes, Zantzi."

"...what."

"What is it?"

"Ten minutes? I've been gone for ten minutes?"

"That's when you dropped off the map, yeah."

"I've been here for ten days."

"Oh dear. Alright, this is a problem. I'm going to have to think about it. I'll have a think about trying to locate you as well. The four of us will think of something, I'm sure."

"Thank you, Ozara."

"I'll keep a sensor out for you, in case you think of anything in the meantime."

Zantzi opened his eyes, his feet drifting to the floor. He stood up straight, stretching. His armour felt far stiffer than it should be.

"Ordis?"

"Operator! You're awake again!"

"How long have I been out?"

"About three days, Operator."

"What? But I was only talking for... Three minutes..."

 _One second for the Crimson Hammer is a twenty-four minutes here? But that means..._

"Zantzi!" Aegis hollered from the other side of the Somatic Link. The Tenno cringed. "You better know how to walk, or you're going to regret it!"

The door opened, and Aegis walked into the room, cracking her knuckles. Zantzi stared.

"Well? Can you walk?"

"...no."

"Any why's that, boy?"

Zantzi could think of no excuses, so he told her the truth.

"I was talking to a friend. Psychically."

"Uh-huh."

"And there's a significant dilation of time between me and them."

"Sure."

"I was talking for three minutes, and that appears to be three days..."

Aegis did nothing for a few seconds before bursting out laughing.

"Oh wow, what have you been smoking? That's no excuse. Come on! I'll see you back at the base. You're coming out of your pod willingly or I'll pull you out myself in front of all the people we saved."

* * *

Zantzi stood in front of the Transference Pod. Aegis stood behind him, flashing him a dangerous grin when he looked back. Groaning, he ended his Transference, the Loki collapsing and the pod opening. As Zantzi blinked wearily in the light, Aegis hauled him out of the pod and threw him across her shoulder. She carried him to the opposite end of the room and unceremoniously dropped him there.

"Now get back to the pod."

When he attempted to crawl forward, Aegis simply placed a boot in front of his shoulder.

"Stand. Up."

Zantzi swallowed. He felt like the next few hours were going to be less than enjoyable for him.

* * *

Marie sat at home, watching the television screen. She had to admit, she missed doing the news. There was no way she could do it now, and she had stopped after it became apparent she wasn't ageing. It would be too strange for her and the audience to be stood next to her cousin who was now more than a head taller than her and give a news report. For that reason, the two have them had quit, making way for an Inkling-Octoling double act to take their place. They had made quite a name for themselves, and were popular in the eyes of the public- not as popular as the Squid Sisters, to which Marie smirked smugly. Her brief stint in a straitjacket had ascended to infamy, despite the Inkling's best attempts to contain it. It had done wonders for her popularity, but had also attracted some less-than-desirable characters who harassed her for "more"; Marie knew full well what they wanted, and took it upon herself to scare them into stopping- usually that involved appearing in an unexpected place and disappearing immediately after. The messages soon stopped.

A theme tune began to play on the television, and Marie focused on the screen, watching as an Inkling girl appeared on-screen, shortly followed by a male Octoling.

"Inkopolis news time!" The girl exclaimed.

"Big news this time, pay attention." The boy followed up.

The background changed to a picture of Flounder Heights.

"By now, most of you will know what happened here-"

"Eighty people were irradiated under mysterious circumstances."

"Nobody knows what really happened."

"But the bad news is that so far, seventeen people have died because of their injuries."

Marie's blood boiled. Having just been at the hospital, she knew Mira was on the way to a full recovery- a lucky escape. She had seen the sorry state of those who weren't going to make it- Inklings and Octolings failing to reconstitute, jellies falling apart, armoured plates and spines dropping from bodies. She had watched a girl- one of the people battling on the roof at the time- melt as her family watched on, powerless to help.

"On the marginally brighter side, Ara, we do have some information on what happened."

"And what would that be, Flint?"

"One of the battlers on the roof woke up today, and remembered that while they were battling, a tall, armoured biped appeared out of nowhere. He said it had four horns, and that it was the thing that released some sort of pulse that irradiated him."

"Hmm. Well there you have it- if you see an abnormally tall, four-horned biped, stay away! Forensics have worked out that the pulse had a maximum range of around fifty-three metres."

Marie zoned out as Ara and Flint went through the stage rotation, briefly stating their viewpoint on the stage. Ara seemed very enthusiastic about Blasters, while Flint carried what looked like a custom brush wherever he went. Marie yawned. She was tired, and felt that it was going to be too cold in her bed tonight without Mira there. She stood up, walking towards the television and going to switch it off when the report changed again.

"Say that again?"

Flint had a hand to his earpiece, listening intently, an incredulous look appearing on his face, soon being replaced by a look of urgency.

"Everyone in Inkopolis, it seems there is a situation developing in the plaza- we have been told there are armed Octolings there, a-and..." Flint swallowed and Ara looked at him, concern written over her features. "And Octavio."


	9. Chapter 9

"Stand up!"

"I... Can't..."

"Well you're going to be here for a while! Stand the hell up and walk to your pod!"

Zantzi lay flat-out on the floor of the room, gasping for breath, his exhales sending dust spinning across the room. He was covered in sweat and grime, and every part of his body ached, especially his legs. His hands were torn from falling over, and his cheeks were streaked with tears of pain. The Transference suit had protected him from any more damage. They had been at it for hours, and yet Aegis did not relent.

"Getting comfortable there? Get used to the dirt, because that's where you'll be if you don't stand up!" The Octoling bellowed.

Zantzi's grimace of pain was replaced by a stoic expression of determination. He took several rapid breaths, pushing himself up on his arms so that he did not inhale the dust. Aegis had made it so that every time he fell over, he was dropped back at the other side of the room. He had gotten marginally further every time, but with each attempt, the throbbing pain in his underused legs intensified. Aegis seemed to take a sadistic pleasure in watching him struggle beneath her.

Growling, he pushed himself to his feet, leaning to his left and throwing his right forward, biting back the choking groan that came with the shooting pain of impact. He leant right, moved his left forward, grunting with exertion. Repeated. He passed his inert Warframe. The pod loomed before him, just a few steps away. Growling again, Zantzi stepped forward, the toes of his right foot directly in front of the base of the pod, and placed his hands on the device, leaning into it. He smirked at Aegis, the expression fading as she approached him. He tried to get into the pod and failed when Aegis grabbed his arm and hauled him over her shoulder, placing him down on the floor instead of dropping him.

"Oh no you don't- you need to clean yourself up. I'm going to carry you up to the next floor."

"N-no, I have an idea."

The Tenno managed, his abused body still gasping for breath. He crawled towards his Warframe and placed a hand on it, the Zariman Hood enclosing his head as he attempted to form a Transference without a pod. It was then, when he was in a sealed environment, when the smell of himself hit him. He quickly opened the hood, breathing in the fresher air of the room. Shaking his head, he tried again, succeeding in taking control of his Warframe; the first the armour did was to readjust its grip on him. The Loki lifted him up, and Aegis shrugged.

"Whatever works. To back up to your room, there should be a shower in there."

* * *

Zantzi had spent at least an hour cleaning both himself and the inside of the Transference suit- it felt strange not to be contained by anything, but it also felt incredibly dangerous- he knew the power contained inside of him was unstable, and his control over it was not absolute. A momentary lapse in concentration would release that power. He breathed deeply and began to climb back into the suit, the familiar feeling of stability returning to him. He had his Loki carry him back down to his Transference Pod. When he was inside the pod again, he sighed. It was so much easier to Transfer with the pod. His initial startup was interrupted when Aegis stuck her head around the door, and he instinctively tensed up. She snorted.

"At ease. I'm not here to give you a bad time again. I need to tell you something, and now's a good time. Vulture and I have a plan to make better relations with the Inklings. We think some may suspect us being here, and a large number of Octolings with military training will make them uncomfortable. So we have this plan that we think you can help with."

"And that is?"

"Executing Octavio."

Zantzi fell silent. Aegis frowned.

"What?"

"I am a Tenno. I fight for balance. I do not partake in petty executions."

"Petty? _Petty?!_ " she roared. She paused, breathing deeply and lowering her voice. "You don't even know some of the atrocities that that _thing_ has committed, since you're not from this planet."

"Enlighten me."

"Octavio orchestrated the theft of the Inklings' power supply about a decade ago. To do that he militarised the entire Octoling race and those that couldn't fight, he mutated them into the other Octarians, slave-like beings with no free will and an implanted urge to kill. When that went pear-shaped, he sanctioned the creation of the Blue Ring, an elite team of Octolings bred to produce mind-affecting venom and enlisted the being Seida to assist them. They were responsible for the deaths of several high-ranking Inklings, and they also poisoned Captain Cuttlefish- the Squid Sisters' grandfather, and Marie's close friend, who went by the name Misha. He is as close to the definition of evil as you can get."

"Before when you mentioned the Blue Ring had killed Cuttlefish, he seemed very angry."

"They had a history. Look, we want you to appear there so that you can show the Inklings and the rest that you're not here to harm the innocent."

"Too late for that."

"Will you stop being so damn pessimistic?" She pinched the bridge of her nose. "Look, I'm not asking you to kill him yourself, but I want you there to keep an eye out for trouble. Inklings have a habit of pulling crap you don't expect them to. Also, we could do with a back-up, in the case that the poison we have isn't up to scratch."

"Octavio is definitely not innocent?"

"Far from it."

"Fine. I'll provide a back-up. I have a dagger that is radioactive. Your kind clearly don't do well with radiation."

"It causes us to liquefy."

Guilt clawed at Zantzi's conscience. He was certain that at least a few of the eighty people he irradiated would meet their end that way.

"Fine. I'm in."

Aegis breathed out slowly.

"Thank you. It means a lot, you know? To finally be able to put down a tyrant in a way he so deserves. I'll go and see if Vulture's knocked him out yet."

* * *

"Octavio, look here."

Vulture beckoned the warlord over, waving at the map on the table.

"Do you know of any more colonies that may still be sealed?"

"No."

"Was that super deep colony the only one of its kind?"

"Yes."

 _Strange_. Vulture thought. _He's usually much more vocal than this, but he's been quiet since we rescued him from Hades prison..._

Sighing, he picked up his radio.

"Anything to report, defenders?"

A chorus of "no, sir" was the reply.

 _Now seems as good a time as any._

He contacted Aegis.

"Yeah?"

"Can you come up to the office? There's something I want to discuss with you."

He'd given his signal.

"Alright."

He placed the radio down and looked up. Octavio was studying the walls, running his hands over them as if he was an inspector of some description. Vulture opened a drawer on his desk, retrieving a vial and a dart gun. Quietly removing the lid, he dipped a dart in the solution, a powerful paralytic toxin, and loaded it into the gun. He cocked the device, aiming and firing as Octavio turned around- he had heard the click. The dart buried itself in his neck, a perfect shot on Vulture's behalf. A look of absolute fury overtook Octavio's features.

"You filthy betrayer!"

He ripped the dart out of his neck and ran at Vulture, leapt onto the desk and delivered a brutal kick that Vulture blocked by grabbing his foot; it still carried enough force to knock him back, however. He pushed back, watching the warlord crash to the ground and struggle to get up.

"I thought I could trust you!" Octavio slurred; the toxin was taking effect. He stumbled, falling over as his muscles seized up. "We could have eradicated the filthy Inklings!"

He collapsed onto his side, unable to talk or move any more. His eyes followed Vulture as he approached, glaring daggers.

"You are a tyrant, Octavio. I have always found tyrants especially susceptible to poison."

Moments later, the door opened and Aegis entered the room, followed by the scavengers.

"Zantzi agreed to help us. He's retrieving a dagger to use from his ship now."

"Good. Let's meet him outside then. It's time to send our message."

* * *

As soon as Marie had heard the name "Octavio", she was moving, phasing through the ceiling and emerging on the roof. She super jumped towards the plaza, landing on a roof overlooking the popular gathering spot. Sure enough, there were Octolings down there, smashing glass bottles on the ground, creating a shattered path of razor-sharp edges between the parting crowds. She then saw Octavio, but he was not in a position she expected- he was chained up, his arms secured behind his back. He was barefoot, and was being led right towards the shattered glass.

Across the plaza, in their studio, Ara and Flint reported the scene as it unfolded.

"Octavio is captive, and is currently being forced to walk across broken glass."

"Flint... We're not past the watershed..."

"I'm just saying it as it is. For those of you just joining us, seven Octolings have moved into the plaza, carrying Octavio as a hostage. Hold on, two of them are taking their masks off. Someone put a camera on them!"

Aegis and Vulture stood in front of the lobby, each carrying a megaphone. Aegis also carried a small firearm, which she fired straight into the air to silence the crowd. The amassed citizens stared at the pair.

"Good." Aegis started. "No need for megaphones."

"Inkopolis! This man..." Vulture pointed at Octavio, who started back with open hatred. "This man was the one who stole your Zapfish! But you already know that. We're here to tell you what you don't know! This man is responsible for the assassination of several of your leaders, over what? A power struggle that could be decided with words. He sanctioned the creation of the Blue Ring, who caused havoc for the years they were active. Again, for what? Petty disagreements."

The two scavengers holding Octavio's arms walked forward, forcing him onto the glass.

"But this pales in comparison to the atrocities he committed on his own people. Some of you may have asked your Octoling friends "where are the other Octarians?". The truth is that they were not created for longevity. They are the result of him-" the word was spat out with just-restrained fury. It was accompanied by an accusatory finger pointed at Octavio. "Experimenting on his own people in a bid to create a race of war- Octolings you see we're either too young to fight or may have been conscripted as soldiers. But what about the rest? Old enough to fight but didn't want to? He mutated them, turning them into nothing more than drones. But. For. What?

"This senseless barbarity has no place in either of our worlds. Just recently, we liberated a colony of Octolings from their collapsing cavings. And the first question he asked when they were out of earshot? He asked when I was planning on building an army. Innocent civilians have no place in the crossfire. The guilty have no place in this world. This is a world of peace, not a world of kill or be killed. And for that reason..."

The path behind Octavio was stained red. The warlord was walked forward and turned the face the crowd. From a sheath on her back, Aegis pulled the Dark Dagger, holding it in a two-handed grip- it could easily be used as a short sword due to the difference in her and Zantzi's height. Blue flames rose from the blade.

"...this tyrant is no longer welcome in this world."

Aegis swung the blade, the edge tearing a cut from Octavio's right shoulder to his left hip. He gasped, and dropped to his knees when the scavengers holding him steady released their grip. He breathed heavily, red seeping from the open wound.

"Whoa!" Flint exclaimed.

"Move the camera away!" Ara yelled into the studio.

"You know..." Octavio started, sucking in gasps of air between words. "I've always beheld... Traitors with... Special contempt..." He coughed, blood splattering on the ground in front of him. "Kill or be killed... Don't you see... That is exactly what you have done?!" The intense radiation from the cut was already causing his extremities to liquefy, his being melting away by the second. "You... Are not as different... As you-"

He stopped talking when Vulture took the Dark Dagger from Aegis and dragged the edge across Octavio's throat- the effect was immediate. A wet choking sound escaped the warlord's lungs, and he folded onto his back, melting even quicker than before. Vulture leaned over Octavio's head.

"We are not the same. I'd get back to you in the afterlife, but I don't think I'll find you in the abyss- you'll be in far too deep for that."

He snapped his fingers, and smoke bombs erupted across the plaza, shrouding the Octolings and hiding them from view as they super jumped.

"For any of you watching, Octavio has just been executed by unknown Octolings."

From her rooftop perch, Marie watched as a sphere of light, blood red in colour, emerged from puddle that was once Octavio. It hovered in the air for a few seconds, smaller orbs orbiting around it before all motion ceased- the soul remained stationary for a few moments before fracturing, splitting into pieces and fading from existence. She almost felt sorry for him, but was snapped out of her thoughts when a large, powerful soul ran straight across the plaza, invisible to all but her. She frowned, recognising it as the boy whom Raaz had captured from the pod. Keeping an eye on her quarry, she hopped from roof to roof, keeping pace with the Warframe as it weaved through alleyways, stopping momentarily every twenty seconds or so to turn invisible again. It soon ran out of the city, and Marie frowned when she figured out where it was going- a mountain loomed ahead, standing high above the trees surrounding it.

 _Well well well. You cannot hide now, alien._

Marie sank into the ground- faint pinpricks of light were visible in the treeline- the souls of people hidden, most likely guards. She glided right underneath them with barely a sound. She felt a familiar increase in difficulty when she moved into the rock of the mountain, but she pushed on regardless, following the soul of the Warframe as it descended under the mountain, soon stopping at one of the sub-levels. Marie picked one of the top corners of the room, one wreathed in shadow, and watched from there.

The Loki walked into the room, each of its limbs rotating as it stretched. It kneeled down beside the pod, and bowed its head. A hiss of air accompanied the opening of the pod, and Marie watched as the soul emerged from the armour and moved to the boy in the pod, sinking into his chest. His eyes snapped open, and he leaned forward, swinging his legs over the edge of the pod. He looked as if he was about to try something, and he surprised Marie when he stood up- albeit shakily, as if he wasn't used to using his legs to stand. He walked forward, the motion looking quite jerky and unnatural, and that was when Marie flowed down the wall and searched the inert Loki for any openings. She found eight slots on the back of the armour, one of which was empty. She pushed a piece of herself into it, filling it with black tar. It writhed momentarily before disappearing inside the armour. She vanished into the ground before Zantzi turned around.

 _You will not hide from me anymore, alien_.


	10. Chapter 10

**The issue of different Warframes will be explained in more detail in a later chapter. But until then...**

Mira groaned as she woke up, attempting to shield her eyes from the bright light of the hospital ward. She reached for the bed's controls, putting herself into a seated position. She grimaced when she left strands of liquid on the controls- she was not fully healed yet. Looking through the plastic screens that surrounded her bed, she saw that there were a few other patients awake. All the beds had plastic sheets around them- while she had been told she wasn't radioactive, it was just a way of preventing dust and other undesirables getting inside her still semi-liquid body. The whirring of air filters and pumps permeated the ward.

Groaning again, she pressed the call button on her controls, waiting for a nurse to answer. One soon appeared on the other side of the plastic curtain.

"Good morning, Mira." She said, an Inkling with bright, shock-pink tentacles. "What can I get for you?"

"A drink, please."

"Certainly. Any preferences?"

"Just chroma gel is fine."

"One moment."

The nurse vanished, swiftly returning with a metal cup filled with chroma gel and a bright yellow bag. She placed the cup on a tray and pushed it into an airlock, of sorts, closing the outer door and pressing a button. The inner door opened, the tray rolling forward into Mira's reach. She took the cup and dipped a finger in, the gel turning from colourless to a rust-red in the blink of an eye. She drank from it, emptying the cup and placing it back on the tray. Flecks of herself clung to the outside of the cup. She pushed the tray back into the airlock while the nurse pulled a pair of tongs from the hazard bag. When the outer door opened, she picked up the cup with the tongs and put it in the bag, dropping the tongs in after.

"Thanks, nurse."

"No problem. It's what we're here for."

The nurse closed the hazard bag and walked away. Mira knew from asking the nurses that anything inside the hazard bags, including the bags themselves, were heat-treated and sterilised before being used again. She had seen many hazard bags in the days she'd been on the ward; she had been told she was making a full recovery, but that it takes a different amount of time for each person. That being said, she almost envied Marie for having recovered so quickly due to her rather unique biology, but her partner had made expressly clear that she was a monster, and that no-one should have to end up like her. Mira always insisted that she wasn't a monster, and Marie always smiled when she did. Mira even occasionally said that she wouldn't have minded the two of them dying if it meant remaining "normal", to which Marie had replied that there were some things in life worth becoming a monster for. The Octoling had noticed that Raaz didn't particularly care about his affliction, and even took part in battles with his little brother from time to time. But then, he still looked normal and had a complete face.

She was snapped out of her thoughts when a siren began to blare from the bed next to hers. A nurse immediately ran into the room, clad in a hazard suit and carrying a case. They stepped into the larger airlock leading into the sealed environment, the pumps cycling the air inside. Once the nurse was inside the enclosure, they opened the case and began loading a spray gun. They spoke into an audio log, and Mira identified them as female, the same nurse that cared for her.

"Nurse Vale, administering one dose of "Constitution" to patient Nile Solonis in an attempt to reconsolidate him. I take full responsibility for my actions."

Vale pulled the trigger on the spray gun, a white mist descending over the patient. Nile's body absorbed the medicine, and the effect was almost immediate. The fluid began to pull itself back together, his fingers, limbs and face taking shape again. He began to breathe normally. Mira saw Vale sag slightly in her hazard suit.

"Application successful, Nile Solonis has been stabilised."

She placed the gun back in the case and stepped out of the enclosure. She scribbled something on the board attached to it before walking away. The thought that something similar could have happened to Mira filled her with discomfort.

* * *

The mountain base was livelier than Zantzi would have liked. While it was true that he was all for saving the lives of the innocent, he couldn't say he liked the noise and festivities that came with them. A simple thank-you was suffice for Zantzi and the Tenno as a whole, and economic incentives were welcome, but apparently the large supply of food was unheard of for the former residents of the super deep colony, and thus a party was currently raging. One of the storage rooms had been reorganised to make room for tables and speakers and he was certain there were at least one hundred Octolings in there. Now, the party would not have bothered him if it were anywhere else. But as luck would have it, the party was in full swing in the room directly across from the one housing his Transference pod. It annoyed him so much, that he had Ordis teleport his Frost Prime to the mountain base. Checking his mods to ensure that his abilities would not stretch beyond the room, he cast a Snow Globe and sat in the middle of it, meditating to the sound of the howling wind.

Zantzi had been pondering how the Crimson Hammer could get a lock on his position in order to deliver the drives he needed to go home. Ordis had done his best to repair the scanners, but he could not confirm their accuracy when they claimed the mountain was not where it was. He thought more while he meditated, ignoring the inquisitive Octolings who were investigating the localised blizzard in the room across from the party. The answer didn't hit him, but rather slapped him for his ignorance.

 _Ozara uses a Nyx most often, you idiot. Psychic lock._

Zantzi cast his mind out, his perception of the room darkening. While he could just talk to the Hammer for longer to take up more time, he got the feeling that Aegis would have choice words for him if he did. As soon as he felt Ozara's presence, he spoke quickly and clearly.

"Get a psychic lock on me and send the drives."

"Will do, now go and party."

It had taken two seconds, and Ozara had already taunted him and booted his mind back to his body. The message came with the scathing mental image of Ozara giving a thumbs-up. Growling, Zantzi stood up, first noticing that his Snow Globe was gone, and a rather irate Aegis was stood before him.

"Can I help you?"

"Where is Zantzi?!"

"Speaking."

"No, Zantzi uses some lean, four-horned armour, not some glitzed-out hulk like you."

A crowd had formed behind Aegis, investigating the source of the racket. Sighing, Zantzi opened his pod, the Frost falling to its knees next to the Loki.

"I have more than one set of armour, Aegis."

She visibly faltered, unsure as to how to progress after such a childish outburst. She frowned.

"Shut it! You can walk, now you can try your hand- or legs, rather- at dancing."

Zantzi disagreed with that notion, and instead of speaking, went to close the pod. Aegis closed the gap and held it open with one arm and hauled him out with the other.

"I don't think so." She carried him into the opposite room, where the party was in full swing. She signed a quick message to the DJ, who turned the music down momentarily. Aegis held up Zantzi. "Everyone! This is Zantzi. Go easy on him."

"No no no no, please-"

His protests were drowned out as she dropped him into the crowd and, despite being taller than most of the people in the room, he was lost from Aegis' sight almost immediately, absorbed into the mass of swaying bodies. Aegis herself backed away to the door, leaning on the frame for a few minutes before curiosity got the better of her and she inspected the new armour. It was definitely more heavy-set than the Loki, and looked more impressive, with a black colour scheme, white and gold accents and even arches of actual gold- it practically radiated power. The Loki on the other hand was a deep red colour, again with white and gold accents. However, while the Frost looked very advanced, the Loki looked almost traditional, like the leather armour infiltrators wore in the weathered books she occasionally found. She took the time to inspect the inside of the Transference pod as well, seeing no obvious control mechanisms. Strange. She spent several minutes taking in every detail and committing them to memory, snapping her attention to the hallway when Zantzi stumbled out of the party. He stood doubled over, gasping for breath. Electric music blared. He looked up and frowned when he saw Aegis inspecting his armour. He moved forward, leaning heavily on the wall for support. He sat down in front of his armour, breathing heavily.

"So. Why does one of your sets of armour look like it fell into a vat of gold?"

"They... Both would look... Similar..."

"What do you mean, "would"?"

"The Loki... Has the something... Called a skin on... It. The Knave skin."

"What does it do?"

"Nothing. It's just for show."

 _He'd get along well with the Inklings, if first impressions hadn't been so bad._

"Alright. What about the helmet? It doesn't quite seem to match the armour."

The helmet did look out of place- while the armour was scored and marked, the four horns were all smooth, with a single chain link hanging from each one.

"The Swindle helmet is what we call Arcane. It has an effect."

"Alright. What does it do?"

"Increases the range of my powers but reduces my health slightly. My current power range is highly practical where I come from. Also, you can't get the helmet any more, making it very expensive."

Aegis nodded, absorbing all of the information before her ears caught a change in the music- a much slower song, a waltz, was now playing. She startled Zantzi when she clapped her hands.

"Would you listen to that? What a song. That's a long enough break for you- go and find the lucky lady. Or guy, depending."

She picked up the Tenno, who weakly protested before being thrust back into the crowd. To his growing horror, the Octolings in the room had paired off, and as luck would have it, he had stumbled straight into the arms of one of the taller Octoling girls. She looked down at him with the reddest eyes he had ever seen and giggled.

"You're cute..."

She grinned, revealing rows of knife-like teeth and tightened her grip on his hands. He swallowed. It was going to be a long night.

* * *

After managing to first disentangle himself from the Octoling- he'd learned her name was Isla- and then navigated through the crowd, Zantzi had somehow found the willpower to make it outside. He lay on the gentle slope of the foot of the mountain, breathing in the fresh air.

 _How long had it been?_ He wondered. _How long had it been until I landed here and breathed fresh, unrecycled air?_

He lay there, breathing quietly, marvelling at how small amounts of steam were drifting from his skin in the night air.

 _So this is what living, truly living, feels like._

He had to say, he did like all the sensations he could feel free of the pod, even if some were less than welcome. For one, armour didn't tire, but it somehow felt satisfying to be out of breath, to feel a natural strength that came with the use of his limbs. Even something as simple as the feeling of cold air being drawn into his lungs was satisfying in its own way, even if it was slightly uncomfortable.

 _The Grineer seem fine on Earth. Maybe I should check it out at some point._

He was snapped from his thoughts when his view had darkened to an unnatural degree. Looking up, he saw that the stars had not accelerated along their path, so it was not communication from the Crimson Hammer.

Or so he thought.

"Zantzi?" Ozara's voice appeared in his mind. "Can you hear me?"

"Yes."

"We have a problem."

"Do you? Is it to do with the fact that your supply drop hasn't arrived yet?"

"It is, actually. As you know, it takes what, thirty seconds to load and fire a capsule? So that's what, twelve and a half hours for you?"

"Your math checks out."

"Whatever. When we fired, there was a Scimitar passing the Dojo by at cruising speed. After we fired, the entire place shook and the Scimitar slowed down. It's barely moved."

"And now we're talking normally with no time dilation on my end."

"Exactly." Ozara's voice was tinged with worry. "Ruben's been working himself to the bone trying to find a way out, but he's turned up nothing. Even the Lotus felt it."

"The Lotus? If she contacted you directly then there must be a severe problem. Did she say anything important?"

"She mentioned it may be possible that we're stuck in the Rift."

Both parties remained silent for a few moments before Zantzi spoke.

"Do you think this is the place where the original Limbo..."

"Could be, but no-one is particularly comfortable with investigating that particular lead. Another point is if that planet you're on is as Earth-like as you say, then where are the forests? Those things were engineered to be permanent, and we prevented the Cicero crisis. It's like you're in the past, and that makes things even more confusing."

"Time travel. That's absurd."

"It's a valid point."

"It's a moot point, given that it's impossible."

"Well, it's either time travel or an extremely Earth-like planet that _coincidentally_ just happens to have the exact same gravity and atmospheric pressure."

Zantzi exhaled. Looking around, he saw that no-one had followed him out yet. Good.

"Say for a moment I agree with the whole time travel thing. How could it have happened?"

"Funny you should ask. Mu got back from the moon just minutes after you dropped off the map. She had been in the data vaults there and guess what?"

"Go on."

"There were rifts in both time and space. She said that travelling through them dumped her into a pristine vault, rather than one that was all broken."

"And you think I fell through a much larger rift?"

"Yeah! Exactly. What were you doing when you fell through?"

"I sabotaged a Neural Sentry."

"Did it explode?"

"Yes."

"That may have reacted with the Void around you. Maybe there was an existing crack, and the blast tore it open."

"This whole time travel thing suddenly sounds more plausible. And I hate it."

"Hah, Ruben said that."

"So you've been keeping on at me, Ruben is doing his research, Mu just got back from raiding data vaults, what about Tohn?"

"Tohn is..." Ozara paused. "Tohn is still being all... Tohn-y."

"Not particularly listening and doing what he wants, when he wants?"

"Precisely."

"What's he doing now?"

"Performing exterior maintenance on the Dojo."

"He is going to lose a frame like that someday."

"We keep telling him that. That being said, he hasn't had any outbursts recently, so that's a bonus."

A fireball streaming across the sky caught Zantzi's attention.

"Gotta go, your pod may have just arrived."

He stood up, watching the fireball fall, landing just a couple of hundred metres away. He ran back inside, stumbling as he did so. He garnered some strange looks on the way from Octolings who had left the party and were now stood around the lower levels of the base. He almost ran straight into Isla, and she giggled when he passed.

 _Strange girl._

He practically leapt into his Transference pod, and his Loki was up on its feet before the blinding effect of the Transference had passed. His Loki caught even more surprised looks and frowns. Ignoring all of them, he ran into the night, using the glow of fire as his marker. The drop pod had left quite the hole in the ground, and a few trees were on fire. He cut the burning trees down to prevent the flames spreading through the canopy. When he turned back to the supply drop, he stopped, growling quietly when he saw the same Inkling that had strung him up.

"This looks important." He said, lifting the pod with apparently no effort. "Bet you want it quite badly."

"If you want me to leave, then yes, I need it." Zantzi replied. He placed a hand on the hilt of his sword. The sheath of the Dragon Nikana glowed slightly brighter at his touch.

"Careful now." Raaz said, tossing the pod between his hands. "Wouldn't want this to get damaged now, would we? I don't want to fight you."

"Were you the one who destroyed my Shade?"

Zantzi surreptitiously pointed with his left hand, his Decoy appearing behind Raaz. It remained silent.

"That flying thing with the glowing eye? Yeah, that was me. Look, Marie asked me to come out here and talk to you. We figured that this wasn't a normal meteorite. She just wants-"

It then mirrored his pose, and Zantzi Switch Teleported with it and turned invisible, delivering a swift kick to Raaz's head. The Inkling staggered and fell to his knees. Pain flared behind his eyes andHe struggled to cling to consciousness. He failed to even register the sucker punch that knocked him flat. He was weakly aware of the pod being removed from his grip. Zantzi's helmet swam in his vision.

"Please." He managed to make out. "I'm sorry, but please just let me go. I just want to go home."

Raaz blinked rapidly, his tar-enhanced body quickly recovering. He formed an arm into a whip and thrust, aiming to trip the Tenno up. However, in his groggy state, his whip was far more rigid than it should have been, and he missed Zantzi's legs. Instead of a satisfying _swish_ , he got a metallic crack as it punctured the pod and the equipment inside. In that instant, Zantzi felt nothing. He just stopped, lifting the pod up to his eyes and running a finger around the lip of the jagged hole in the casing. After, however, he wasn't sure what came over him, and he knew that he couldn't justify what he was about to do.

He didn't care.

He strode over to Raaz, who was pushing himself to his feet and swung the pod, the case connecting with the side of his head. He staggered, crying out in pain and shock, like he wasn't expecting the counter to be so savage. The follow-through of the swing caused the case to strike Zantzi, depleting his shields. If he were in complete control, Zantzi would have stopped after the first hit. But something manipulated the armour, forcing his hands into action again and swinging the canister into the only hard part of the Inkling biology.

The beak.

A sickening crunch invaded Zantzi's ears, and a blue spray splattered across his armour. He didn't notice. Raaz howled in pain, falling onto his back, his hands cupping his jaw protectively. Blue ichor dripped from his lips and to the ground. His flesh seemed to crawl slightly, rising up and shifting unnaturally, his blue blood blackened with recoiling tar. He backed away, pushing himself backwards across the ground, crying without restraint and gasping through a limp jaw. Zantzi released the pod, horrified at what he had done. He couldn't meet the young man's eyes, instead settling for the ground. A pair of hands emerged, dragging Raaz into the earth, his haunting cries still lingering in Zantzi's mind. He looked at his hands.

 _Why did I..._

His train of thought was interrupted when a knife cut through his newly-regenerated shields, leaving a scratch mark on his chestplate. Marie burst from behind a tree, swinging again.

"You monster."

Zantzi barely dodged the next flurry of blades- _where was she getting them from?-_ and caught one aimed at his neck.

"The first time may well have been an accident..."

She leapt at him, jettisoning ink and barreling into him- something was wrong. Someone of her short stature should not carry that much force at that speed. He toppled over, Marie landing on top of him and standing on his chest. Hands burst from the ground and wound around his limbs- Raaz must have been hiding nearby.

"But that?"

She stamped, the armour creaking beneath her foot.

"That wasn't an accident, was it?"

 _Creak._

"You wanted to hurt him."

 _Creak._

"You are _hideous_."

 _Crack._

The chestplate caves in, and Zantzi's struggles ceased. Yet Marie still stood there.

"Get up. I know you can recover, you told me yourself."

And recover he did. The force of his revival propelled Marie upwards slightly, and he ran, turning invisible.

"Oh no you don't."

She could see his soul burning bright and blue in the darkness, and she raised a hand. A blackened limb appeared beneath Zantzi's feet, snaring him and dragging him back towards the Inkling.

"I want answers, you owe us that much for breaking Raaz's beak like that."

Raaz emerged from the trees, having strapped his jaw up with bandages that now fluttered in the wind. He raised an arm, tendrils immobilising Zantzi. The Tenno could hear his ragged breath.

"What was in the case?"

"A way for me to leave, you fools. I was going to leave, and now you've trapped me, and possibly the rest of my Clan."

"Your Clan?"

"Other Tenno. My friends. They sent me that case from their time and it dragged them out. They're now stuck here as well."

Marie shot a look at Raaz, uncertainty written across her face behind her half-mask. Her expression soon soured, however. She jabbed her finger at Zantzi's face.

"Well you can tell them what happened to you, as a warning if they decide to attack."

She signaled, and Zantzi died again as Raaz tore him apart. This time, he did not revive, instead allowing the retrieval teleporter to move his parts back to the mountain base. As Marie watched the parts disappeared, she watched as a black substance dissolved into the earth, more than she had put there. She tutted, turning to Raaz.

"Come on, let's get you to a proper doctor."


	11. Chapter 11

**Again, things such as the situation of the Crimson Hammer will be explained. Patience, fellow Tenno/squids/kids.**

"Oh my, that is quite the nasty injury you have there."

Raaz nodded, the bandages wound around his jaw shifting as he did so. The white fabric had long since been stained blue by the blood seeping from his gums.

"How did this happen?"

"He was hit in the face with a large blunt object." Marie stated. "Here are the broken bits, if, uh, they are of any use."

Raaz opened his hand, small fragments of white resting there. The nurse behind the desk swallowed.

"We can't just reattach broken parts of a beak to the remnants still in his jaw. This requires a full surgery."

Raaz quickly scribbled something down on a piece of paper.

"How long would I have to wait?" It read.

"Probably not long." The nurse said. "The current issue isn't available surgeons, but beds. We still have twenty-five people bedridden from the whole radiation thing."

The door leading to the ward opened, and Mira stepped out accompanied by a nurse.

"Twenty-four."

The Octoling looked up, sighting Marie and running forward, giving the smaller Inkling very little time to react before she was pulled into an embrace.

"Urk! Hi Mira."

The Octoling released Marie and turned to Raaz, who backed away. Mira breathed in sharply, seeing the blue bandages and white shards in his hand.

"Raaz, what happened to your face?"

Marie pulled her aside, whispering.

"The alien attacked him."

"It what? Did Raaz provoke it?"

"Not enough to warrant this."

The pair looked at the nurse behind the desk.

"How soon can he have surgery?"

She tapped away at her computer.

"About... ten minutes."

Marie looked at Raaz, who nodded.

"We'll wait."

* * *

Zantzi stood in front of Vulture and Aegis. The two Octolings had decidedly stern looks on their faces. Vulture was apparently able to mask his rage much more effectively than Aegis, who looked one wrong word away from exploding.

"So. Adding to the list of crimes that you've committed, which is breaking and entering, theft, manslaughter, trespassing, aiding a convict's escape, there's now assault, battery and actual bodily harm. You do realise that the Inklings have all the grounds they need to imprison you, and us, for assisting you?"

Zantzi nodded, feeling very exposed and vulnerable without his Warframe.

"Say it."

"Y-yes."

"Yes what?"

Zantzi stopped himself from shooting him a rancid glare.

"Yes _sir_."

"Whether you claim something manipulated your armour or didn't, it won't help you. As far as they know you did it on purpose. Understand?"

"Yes sir."

"One last thing. We've done a pretty good job of keeping you hidden away. If you do something else of this calibre, and I mean anything, we will cut ties with you and reveal your location to the Inklings. This new colony will not be seen collaborating with a dangerous alien who appears to think he operates above the law and its consequences. You are on strike two. Understand?"

"Yes sir."

"Good."

Vulture turned and walked out of the room, slipping between the scavengers who were preventing any curious citizens from listening in. Zantzi went to sit his pod, but Aegis stepped forward, jamming a hand between the skin of his neck and the Zariman suit.

"Don't think for a second that you're getting away scot-free. We may have got you walking, but now we're going to make those limp, weak arms strong. We are going climbing."

Zantzi didn't even protest. He simply stood up and followed Aegis out of the base. He knew that if he tried to run, she would easily catch him and make his already-gruelling punishment much worse. They stepped into fresh air, but instead of going downslope, they went up, the grass curving up and away from them, growing sparser the higher they went. There came a point where the grass was replaced by rock, and various holes and outcrops in the rock were covered in a white powder. Aegis stared at the wall for a few seconds before turning around.

"Wait here and watch."

Zantzi did as instructed, watching as the Octoling placed her hands inside a wide crack, bracing herself against an outcrop. She scaled the wall in seconds, pulling herself up and over the lip of the wall with little effort. She hung her legs over the edge.

"Your turn."

Zantzi stepped forward, placing his hands where she had placed hers, copying her stance of leaning back, allowing his arms to straighten out. When he tried to move a foot off the ground, his grip failed and he fell on his back.

"Pathetic. Get up and try again."

Zantzi pushed himself to his feet, growling under his breath.

"Oh, and don't think for a second that broken bones are going to stop me. This will be extremely painful. For you." She smiled sweetly, clapping her hands. "All you have to do for today is get up here the same way I did."

Zantzi stepped forward again, placing his hands back into the crack and leaning more of his weight into his arms. This time, his was much grip more stable, but still fell when his arms gave out upon lifting his feet off the ground.

"The quicker you get up this wall, the sooner you get to go inside."

The next few times he tried, Zantzi barely made it past the first move- he kept falling as his arms gave you due to their underuse. However, on his ninth try, he managed to move his feet off the ground- a fall was going to hurt a lot more now. And fall he did; while he was looking for the next hand hold, his grip failed and he fell, landing flat on his back and having the air in his lungs forced out. He wheezed, looking down the slope as he rolled onto his front and spotting Isla standing a short distance away. She tilted her head and giggled, the soft sound somehow carrying itself to Zantzi's ears. He coughed, making to stand up.

"Looks like you've got yourself an audience, Zantzi. You going to make less of an arse of yourself now?"

With renewed determination, Zantzi set himself against the wall again. He was not going to let the wall defeat him.

* * *

The wall had defeated him. After watching him struggle for hours, she had eventually shown mercy and called it a day. Zantzi had stumbled back to his pod on legs that barely carried him, pushing himself into the arms of his Loki and lifted himself through contact Transference, heading up to the residential rooms. He had his Loki kneel in the corner of the central living space before removing the Zariman suit and showering. Following that, he sat down, wrapped in a towel, with the kit he used to clean the inside and outside of the suit and got to work, the water in the basin he was using discolouring as he did so. Rock dust ended up suspended in the water, as did other flecks of dirt and grime. He hummed to himself as he worked, becoming so detached that he didn't notice someone had opened the door behind him until they spoke.

"Want some help there?"

Zantzi jumped, going wide-eyed and feeling his power surging before he shuddered, doubling over as he struggled to contain it.

"Oh, are you okay? I didn't think I'd surprise you so much." Isla's voice was dripping with worry, but also something else.

"Just give me... A second..." Zantzi choked, containing his power and letting out a deep breath. He sat up, an uncomfortable burning feeling spreading under his skin as his power settled. "How did you get in?"

Isla shrugged. She was wearing a simple shirt and skirt, as well as some trainers. Her hair-tentacles hung free down her back

"The door was ajar."

Zantzi sighed, returning to scrubbing the gloves of his suit.

"Wow, she really wore you out... I can see your hands shaking from here."

She wasn't wrong- the Tenno could barely clench his fingers together once Aegis was done with him. He had actually used the butt of his palm to operate the shower and was having difficulty scrubbing. Isla sat down across from Zantzi, looking into the basin.

"Is that water?"

"Yes."

"I don't suppose you have any rubber gloves?"

"I think there's a box of them in the bathroom."

Isla stood up, crossing the room and stepping onto the tiled surface, quickly locating the box of gloves and sliding one onto each hand. She walked back into the living area and sat back down again, picking up the other Zariman glove, following the Tenno's example and scooping water onto it rather than immersing it. As she did not have any tools with which to clean, she simply began making circular motions with her fingers, dislodging the dirt more efficiently than Zantzi due to his weakened state. The pair sat in silence, the quiet splashing the only sound in the room. Low hums occasionally passed through the room, and voices carried down the corridors. The water soon became completely dirty, and Zantzi carefully laid the now-clean gloves on a mat before standing with the intent to refill the basin.

"Wait." Isla said, reaching out and grabbing his hands when he went to pick up the basin. She frowned when she felt something tingling across her hands, and she let go. "Let me take it."

The Tenno hardly protested, merely sitting down and shrugging. Isla picked up the bowl and carefully- _very_ carefully- poured it down the sink. She ran more hot water, not bothering to check the temperature, instead waiting until steam appeared before shutting off the hot water and filling the rest of the basin with cold. She carried back into the other room and set it down. She sat down closer to Zantzi, and picked up the Zariman Hood, inspecting it in her hands. It was clean already.

"What is this?"

"It's a hood."

The pair lapsed into silence again.

 _What a successful conversation_. Isla thought dryly.

"What does this suit do anyway?"

"It..." Zantzi started, thinking of how best to explain it. "It stabilises me somewhat. You saw what happened earlier, you surprised me and I almost exploded. Me and the rest of my kind are very unstable, there's a lot of power looping around inside of us. Any unexpected stimulus could set us off, as you almost found out. The suit keeps the power in check so we don't inadvertently hurt anyone."

"I'm sure it can't be that bad." Isla attempted to explain.

"Isla, the last person that surprised one of us lost most of their face and an eye to burns."

"O-oh."

The pair were silent again, focussing on washing the remaining pieces of the Zariman suit. Isla changed the water twice more before they were done. She picked up the basin and went to empty it, tipping down the sink before turning around to head back into the other room. It was fortunate that she had already emptied the basin, otherwise she would have seriously injured herself when she dropped it in horror. All across Zantzi's back were burns, grotesque grey marring spread across his flesh like the web of some infernal infernal spider.

"I thought it was just your face..."

Zantzi turned around to face her, panic on his face.

"Oh, I, uh, I'm so sorry, I didn't mean for you to see this. One moment." He finished putting on the main piece of the Zariman suit, the garment fastening itself in place. "Better? I am so sorry."

"How?"

 _Sod it, it's not like its sensitive information._

"There was a war, a long time ago, a war that put us, the Orokin, against the Sentients. They almost won the war, because they could subvert technology, adapting to it almost instantly to nullify it. The Orokin got desperate and fired out ship, the Zariman ten-zero into the Void. Now, the Void is full of energy, but its incredibly dangerous. While we were there and exposed to it, it changed us. After that, I don't really know what happened. What I do know is that after the Zariman made it back, they put us in pods to control the Warframes, the latest and final weapon against the Sentient horde. Our guide called it "the Second Dream", and I only recently woke up from it. Turns out some of my friends had already awoken, apart from Ruben, but he soon found himself."

Zantzi stopped for a few moments. Isla sat, enraptured by his story of a war amongst the stars.

"Speaking of my friends, I need to talk to them."

"Can I... Listen?"

The question caught Zantzi off-guard, and he looked away, nervously picking at the fingers of his gloves.

"I don't know. I don't want to overwhelm our communicator. I don't /think/ that there'll be a problem..."

 _It's one more mind against the entire psychic might of Ozara in her Nyx. It'll be fine._ he reasoned with himself.

"Alright." He said, sitting down and removing his gloves. "Sit down right here, right in front of me."

He waited for Isla to comply, and she sat cross-legged in front of him, her knees almost touching his. She held her skirt down with both hands, conserving her dignity. Zantzi swallowed uncomfortably.

"I... I need to hold both of your hands."

Isla blinked before shrugging, moving her hands into his with little hesitation. She immediately felt something shifting beneath his skin, a strange energy that made her nerves tingle. She wished she's worn something more conservative. Zantzi on the other hand already had his eyes closed, so Isla followed suit, soon matching her breathing with his. She could hear whispers of voices, and it didn't take her long to realise that it was Zantzi's mind she was listening in on. She subtly pulled away, far enough so that she didn't hear any of Zantzi's thoughts, but close enough that the connection was stable.

"Ozara?" Zantzi's voice called out into the darkness. Isla felt the response before she heard it.

"There's a second mind."

"She's a friend."

"You know I can't take that chance." The voice was then directed at her. "This won't hurt if you won't resist."

Isla felt a presence inside her head, and it was not entirely painless. It was quite the contrary; when Isla resisted the initial probe, Ozara offered a mental rolling of her eyes and shattered her mental defences and sifted through her memories while she writhed in wordless agony. She could faintly hear Zantzi protesting- he had let go of her hands, but Ozara had not let her escape so easily. The stranger continued to scour her mind, searching for any sort of malicious intent or ulterior motive. Finding none, Ozara withdrew, and Isla could practically feel the guilt radiating from the Tenno's psyche.

"I'm sorry, I had to be sure. I did warn you, though."

Zantzi was back in front of her, staring at Isla, equally as guilty as Ozara.

"Do you want to carry on?"

"May as well." Isla managed.

The pair closed their eyes again, talking to Ozara.

"So how have you managed it? How did you bring a second person into the link?"

"Skin contact."

"Come again?"

"Direct skin contact."

Laughter erupted all around the pair, Ozara barely containing herself.

"Wow, Zantzi? I didn't have you down as a ladykiller. So!" The outburst hurt Isla's head, and Ozara's attention was on her. "What did you do, Isla? He's normally so stoic. And don't forget I read your mind, so I know much more than your name."

"I, uh, surprised him? He left his door unlocked and I just walked in."

"And you danced. I saw that in your memories too. You think he's cute."

Isla grinned.

"Yeah. But why is holding hands such a big deal?"

Ozara reigned the last of her laughter in.

"You know how we Tenno spend most of our time in pods on our own ship?"

"Yeah?"

"Given that a select few of us can actually walk, we very rarely come into direct contact with each other. Add into the equation the risks of a Tenno removing their suit, and you have what looks like a very benign gesture become far more... Intimate."

Isla felt Zantzi squirm slightly. She grinned.

"So, what was it you wanted, Zantzi?"

"A-another drop pod of drives."

"Huh? What the hell for? Was the first one not good enough?"

"It was destroyed on impact."

It was a blatant lie, and both Zantzi and Ozara knew that it hadn't worked.

"One of the indigenous destroyed it- _by accident_ \- and you smashed his teeth in. But hey, you don't actually know what happened, I see. So how about this. You give the resource cost back to the Hammer and you'll get your drives."

"That's fine."

"Alright. Tohn!" Ozara shouted. Whether it was an actual shout or purely mental, Isla didn't know. "Aim and fire another pod at the last set of coordinates. Fuse a key to it to give it the power to exit the Rift."

There were a few moments of silence.

"Oh, and Ruben figured it out. We are in the Rift, just not any recognisable part of it. We're working on a way to pool all of our Void Keys together in order to leave. Sure, we'll irradiate a huge area of space, but that's just life, I guess. I mean, we and the Dojo will be fine."

"That sounds... risky."

"It'll be fine. I hope you're outside because Tohn just- what the hell?!"

Ozara screeched, the echoes of her thoughts that Isla could perceive rapidly becoming less casual and more infuriated. Her outburst had given Zantzi, and by extension, Isla, an awful headache.

"Ozara! What happened?"

"No clue! The entire-"

A voice joined Ozara's- male, soft-spoken and rapid.

"We've fallen out of the Rift. There's a planet on the scanners, and I'm getting resonance from a Tenno landing craft."

Ozara gasped, her pain lancing through both Zantzi and Isla. In that instant, the two of them could see the inside of a structure. They could see an enormous window, banners hanging from the top of it. Flames rose from the bottom of the glass panes. It took Zantzi a second to realise that it was the world through Ozara's eyes. She turned, and she quickly barked an order to a Volt whom Zantzi recognised as Ruben. He shot out of the observatory, Ozara gaining a boost of speed as she yelled into a microphone.

"All Cephalon! Dock all landing craft with the Dojo, maximum thrust! Pull us out of the gravity well!"

Isla's sight returned to normal when Zantzi let go of her hands and stumbled into his armour, the Loki shuddering with a blue flash before hoisting him into its arms and setting off at a run.

"Wait!"

Isla couldn't hope to keep pace, but she followed him the best she could, soon emerging into the open air. Zantzi was stood in front of her, looking up, a mortified expression on his face. Isla followed his gaze and gasped- high in the sky, at the edge of the atmosphere, was a grey structure, wreathed in flame. Specks of different coloured light surrounded it at regular intervals- the engine flares of the landing craft struggling to keep the Dojo in orbit- Isla was no scientist, but she could see that they were failing. Zantzi grabbed her hands, pulling her into communication with Ozara. Sirens rang through her skull, making her wince.

"Isla, where can we direct the Dojo? Is there anywhere far away from a population centre in range of a course correction?"

A smaller fireball- the second pod- hit the ground a short distance away.

"Up to the north! No-one lives up there, it's too cold."

"Ozara, direct the Dojo up north. You don't have much time before the craft engines burn up."

"All Cephalon, direct the Dojo north! All hands evacuate! Zantzi, I hope for your sake that the girl is right."

Moments later, the communication link was dropped. Zantzi and Isla looked up to the Dojo, watching as it listed, pointing north and accelerating towards the ground. The four sets of light detached from the structure, peeling away as the flames grew. One craft flew directly towards the pair, the ground shaking slightly as it approached. Several more Octolings had emerged from the mountain, whispering between themselves and pointing. A Scimitar flew straight overhead, a figure dropping from it and straightening up in front of Zantzi. It was much more feminine than the Loki, and looked very organic. A flat horn looped back over its head. It was primarily black, a few flecks of white spreading across the armour.

"Ozara!"

"Zantzi, take everyone here back inside. We don't know how much energy the blast could release, but they could be in danger, even at this range." When Zantzi stalled, she growled and turned to them herself. "All of you! Inside! You only have a few seconds before-"

A blinding flash turned night to day. Ozara looked at it for a moment before taking matters into her own hands and shoving Zantzi and Isla towards the mountain.

"Inside! All of you!"

The screaming began after the flash, as if a switch had been flipped in the spectator's heads. They suddenly rushed to the entrance, moving inside as fast as the aperture would allow. Seconds later, the shockwave hit, a wall of dust blasting past the entrance, shaking the mountain itself. Once the initial wave had passed, Zantzi stepped back outside, slowly setting himself down and walking out without the aid of his armour. He paled at the sight he saw. Others followed him out. Someone laughed, unsure of what else they were to do. Others cried, unable to comprehend the situation at hand. Most were silent, Zantzi and Ozara included. The Nyx shook her head, placing a hand on Zantzi's shoulder.

"Looks like the gang's all here. But what to do now? Well. Looks like we have one hell of a mess to clean up."

In the distance, a cloud rolled higher into the sky, a column of dust and flame rising to meet it.

 _This just got so much more complicated._

 **The whole skin contact things is a headcanon I have- what else would you expect if your entire race kept themselves to themselves all the time?  
**


	12. Chapter 12

**There's a little bit of Headcanon coming into this chapter regarding Warframes and changing between them. Nothing that breaks away too ludicrously from what is actually Canon in the Tennoverse.**

* * *

Soon after the initial impact, three more ships dropped off their inhabitants around Zantzi. First to arrive was Ruben, dropping from his Liset as a Volt. He was a dark shade of blue in colour, and white lightning danced about his fingertips. Streaks of red also adorned the armour.

Next to arrive was Mu, dropping from her Mantis in the Nezha Warframe, red rings glowing with blue light on her head and back. She was mostly white in colour with a few errant stripes of grey. She looked to the ascending dust cloud and sagged slightly.

Finally, there came Tohn. He dropped from his Liset in a Hydroid, and had a dull green colour scheme. He saw Zantzi and waved. Zantzi waved back. Isla saw that they all had matching emblems on their right shoulder, a stylisation of a hammer wreathed in scarlet flames. She looked at the massed Tenno, watching them as they stared between the rising dust cloud and the Octolings of the mountain. One of them, Ozara, looked at her and approached, kneeling down to her height.

"You're Isla, aren't you?"

"Yeah."

"Sorry about the whole mind reading thing, I just had to be sure. Are you keeping Zantzi in line?"

"No. Well, I help, but it's mostly-"

"What the hell is going on out here?"

"-her."

Aegis appeared from the tunnel, wriggling her fingers and slamming her fists together. Vulture appeared behind her. She glared at the newly arrived Tenno and then at the dust cloud. She growled, whirling back towards the Tenno.

"This was your fault, wasn't it?!"

Ruben took a step back, as did Mu.

"We didn't do this." Tohn said flatly. "Not on purpose. We're trapped here, you idiot."

"I'm sorry?" Aegis turned to Tohn, a look of fury on her face. She flexed her fingers. "Did you say something?"

"I did. I said it wasn't our choice to crash here."

"And what did you say after that?"

"Tohn, don't..." Zantzi warned as the Tenno approached Aegis, towering over her ominously.

"I said it wasn't our choice to crash here, you idiot."

Barely had he finished his sentence when Aegis' fist crashed against his shields, several pieces of the gauntlet sliding forward to protect her hand, broke through and hit him square in the faceplate. The Hydroid staggered backwards.

"You rat."

"Let me tell you how things work around here. We-" she gestured to herself and Vulture. "-are in charge here. And we don't appreciate your attempt to ram-raid the mantle. So here's what you'll do, first impressions be damned. You'll go back to that fireball, fix it and get the hell off our planet."

"Aegis, please." Vulture said, and Aegis' next words died in her throat. "While I do not appreciate that one of you just attempted to intimidate Aegis..." He punctuated his statement with a glare at Tohn. "If what you want to do is leave, then we'll help you. Keep your friend over there in line, however, because Aegis operates on a one-strike policy unless I ask otherwise. Next time, she won't stop after just one punch, understand?"

Tohn nodded. Ruben and Mu looked at each other before stepping out from behind Ozara.

"Glad to see we straightened that out. Now then. How long will the burning last?"

"Not long." Ruben said. "The Dojo is made from a rather strong material, so I'm confident it's still structurally sound. At the moment it'll just be radiating away the residual heat from entry through the atmosphere. If you have respirators, you could follow us into the dust cloud."

When Ozara looked around the crowd of Octolings again, she saw that most of them did in fact have respirators and goggles somewhere on their person.

"Why do so many of you have masks and goggles?" She asked.

"In case of cave-ins."

"That's... Fair enough. Ruben, since we have followers, no speed."

"Yes, yes. I know. Anyone coming, step forward."

Vulture stepped forward, gently pulling Aegis back as he did so, shaking his head when she looked as if she was about to protest. Isla also stepped forward. No one else moved.

"That's it then? Just the seven of us?" Ozara asked. "In that case, go and get into your pod, Zantzi."

* * *

The seven of them made their way through the forest. The four newcomer Tenno had returned to their landing craft, Zantzi going with Ozara as his landing craft was out of commission still. Vulture had gone with Ruben and Isla with Mu. Tohn had gone ahead to extinguish a path through the inferno that was raging around the the downed Dojo- the Octolings had briefly explained their vulnerability to water, so Tohn had merely nodded and elected to go ahead with his Hydroid, reasoning that there would be less risk that way. Pillars of white steam now rose alongside columns of black, carbonic smoke. As the Tenno and their Octoling followers landed, they stood fast while Tohn disappeared into the distance, great tentacles of water rising from the ground and breaking over the flames. His silhouette raised an arm, and a barrage of water rained down, exploding in midair and scattering fluid across the flames. A path had been made, and Ozara led the way. The heat was almost unbearable for Vulture and Isla- she felt sorry for him, because while she wore a thin, loose-fitting shirt and skirt, he was in heavy overalls, and it was taking its toll. He was sweating bullets, but he never once complained. Instead, he looked forward and followed the Tenno.

The group soon arrived at the rim of the impact crater. Tohn was already in the depression, cooling the ground around the Dojo. The structure was glowing a deep red, and Ruben tapped the tips of his fingers together, laughing to himself while Isla and Vulture stared. The Dojo stretched an incredible distance into the sky, slightly charred from its violent landing.

"How?" Vulture asked. "How hasn't it buckled under its own weight? I mean the foot of it is glowing..."

"Aha! This is no normal steel." Ruben said. "This is a very special alloy with a very special addition. Forma."

"Orokin material, it'll take too long to explain. Zantzi? I assume you've still got your key?"

Zantzi uncurled his fingers, a silver object appearing there. Ozara and Mu did the same, as did Ruben.

"Excellent. Now then, you're going to need to hold onto one of us."

Isla didn't question it, and simply placed her hand in Zantzi's. he stiffened slightly, standing straighter than he had been; Isla noticed and smirked. Vulture raised a brow.

"Why?"

"So we can take you inside. We're not in landing craft or the Void. Just take my hand, alright?"

Ruben held out his hand. Vulture reluctantly placed his hand in the Tenno's. Tohn lifted a key of his own and vanished. Ozara went next, followed by Zantzi and Ruben. As Mu went to head inside, she swore she saw something move at the edge of her vision. Tilting her head, she cast Divine Spears, and found no targets in range. She turned back to the Dojo and headed inside.

Isla wasn't sure what she was expecting. She certainly expected to see cracks and sparking wires from the crash, or maybe fires and melted metal. What she didn't expect was to appear in a pristine garden, a stream running through it and even a breeze stirring the air. It caught her completely off guard to a point where she actually vocalised it with a mystified "huh?". Zantzi chuckled. Ruben tapped the tips of his fingers together again, laughing to himself.

"See? Forma. Very strong."

Sirens were still ringing in the Dojo, and Ruben quickly navigated the group through the corridors, coming up to a door that was glowing. He tapped at the panel and tilted his head.

"Everyone stand back. Tohn, get ready to extinguish the fires in here."

"What's in there?" Vulture asked.

"Shield generators. It's the main reason why the hull didn't breach. Also the reason why the explosion was as small as it was."

"Small?" Vulture snarked. "You call that small?"

"The shields absorbed a large percentage of the Kinetic Energy the Dojo had. If they had remained intact, the energy would have been dispersed in here safely. However, the automated systems put the shields into overdrive to preserve your planet's biosphere. The feedback destroyed the generators by the looks of it, but left your planet intact. Tohn?"

Ruben looked at the Hydroid, who shrugged.

"Ready."

Tohn crouched, and everyone else but Ruben backed away. He hit a button, and as the doors opened, he surged forward as a wave of water, extinguishing the backdraft before it could deal any damage. One enormous ball of steam heralded the quenching of the rest of the room, the two Octolings flinching as it rolled overhead.

"Do you not have any external heatsinks? This seems... Inefficient." Vulture remarked.

"We do. But you must remember that this is a space station." Ozara replied. "Normally, we'd seal this room off and evacuate all the air either by drawing it into the Dojo or out to space, choking the flames. That's why any computers controlling the shields are not in the generator room. But since we're on a planet, exposing it to the outside won't do much and our systems are still recovering from the crash, so there's not much else we can do."

"How does a system recover? You make it sound like it's alive."

"That's because it is." Zantzi said.

Tohn reappeared in the doorway, wiping his hands on his legs.

"Fire's out, it's nothing too serious. Nothing we can't fix."

"That's good. Ruben, go and get the systems running, it's what you're good at. Tohn, go find any more fires and deal with them. Mu, Zantzi, I don't have anything for you to do yet, so why don't you show your guests around? I'm going to go and fix up our communications."

The other three Tenno ran down the corridors, vanishing from sight. Vulture looked at Mu and shrugged, keeping pace with her as she walked down a different corridor, gesturing for him to follow, leaving Zantzi and Isla alone by the still-steaming generator room. He fidgeted idly.

"So, uh..."

"What's with all the different armours?" Isla asked. "I mean, they're all different from yours."

"I can explain, but it may take a while."

"Walk and talk?" She suggested.

"...why not." The pair walked away from the generator, heading into the Dojo. "Each set of armour is called a Warframe, and each one has different abilities. Mine is called "Loki" and is lightly armoured, but fast. I can place decoys, turn invisible, teleport with someone or my decoy, and disarm people within a certain radius. Ozara's armour, the Nyx Warframe, lets her attack the minds of her enemies and absorb damage. Ruben, the blue one, was using a Volt, which as the name suggests can manipulate electricity. He can also speed us up. Mu, who was in the white armour, was using the Nezha, one of the more recently discovered Warframes. She uses fire to attack enemies and buff teammates. And Tohn, the green one, was using Hydroid which utilises water, as you saw."

"Can you use those armours too?"

"Yes, I even have the upgraded versions of a couple of them."

"Then why do you use this armour all the time?"

"Ah, that is an interesting question."

"How so?"

"Think about it." Zantzi said. "All of this different armour, all of these different abilities, why stick to one set? That's what you're asking, isn't it?"

"I... I guess so."

"Well, it's easier to think of each Warframe as a muscle. And as you exercise a muscle, it gets stronger. When you use a Warframe for long enough, you begin to see things differently, and can do things that suit you, rather than being limited by the armour. Take Ozara, for example. She uses a Nyx so often that she was able to communicate with me over an impossible distance, something most Tenno would not be able to do. Ruben, while he's using a Volt now, usually uses one called Limbo. He doesn't tell us much, but I bet he can probably move objects to and from the rift as he pleases. Mu likes to use Ember. The Ember Warframe isn't exactly subtle, specialising in fire and explosions, but she has such fine control over her abilities that water is no longer a problem."

"How?"

"Water is composed of hydrogen and oxygen. She splits the molecules apart and uses it as fuel. The problem is that it takes her a while to charge up, in a way, both before and after."

"What about Tohn?"

"Tohn is... Strange." Zantzi said. "He chooses not to specialise, but that's not what's strange. It's just that after a mission went wrong, he became very quiet and more hostile. We'll keep a closer eye on him."

The pair stepped into a large hall, a series of bells stood around it. They were all easily the size of Isla, and they only got bigger from there.

"How much did all of this cost you?" She asked, bewildered. "This place is huge, and those gardens, these decorations... They must have cost a fortune!"

"Not really. Not for us, anyway." Zantzi tilted his head. "Although we may not be able to build many more rooms, since we're cut off from the bulk of our resources."

"You built all of this by yourselves?"

"Our technology is advanced enough to do it, yes."

Isla turned on the spot, taking it all in. Aside from the bells, the room was mostly empty, save for a small pad in the corner and a tower in the direct centre of the hall. She pointed it out.

"Ah, that's a trading post. It speaks for itself."

"What about the pad in the corner?"

"A very convenient piece of equipment. Ruben was in charge of placing them around the Dojo. They're basically miniature teleporters. Typical Ruben, he placed them rather conservatively, so we have one here, the trade hall, one in the research corridor, one for the duelling rooms, and one for the trophy room and observatory. We walk everywhere else using lifts. That being said, it wouldn't surprise me if Ruben had placed a few more."

The Volt himself suddenly appeared, looking around the room and spotting Zantzi.

"Power generators are all fine, and the observatory's intact. There is some structural damage down below, since the shields did give way. But the structure is stable. Now, come with me, because we need to discuss something together."

* * *

The five Tenno and two Octolings were stood in the observatory, stood around the central console. Ruben was tapping away at the controls, and a hologram of the Dojo appeared.

"So." Ruben said. "We need to figure out what exactly pulled us through to this world. More importantly, we need to figure out how to get back. So, what do we know so far?" He pointed at Zantzi. "The anomaly occurred when we shot the first resupply pod out to you. Ozara contacted you with telepathy, and I believe that that became a sort of link between these two times. Now, space warps considerably in the Void, so we may have been closer than we thought to the rift you fell through. When we fired the first pod, it expanded and engulfed us. After that, the second pod pulled us all the way through and deposited us in the upper atmosphere. And since I'm picking up no Void Energy, I think it's safe to say that the rift has closed somewhat. That brings me onto the second subject matter- getting back. If the rift is small enough to be undetectable, then there's no way the Dojo is going to fit through. But before we even get to that, we need to find a way to propel both a Dojo and an Orbiter out of the atmosphere, while leaving this planet and its biosphere intact."

"That rules out using Void keys as propulsion." Ozara said. "Using enough to give that sort of propulsion would render the planet inhabitable. Which means we need a different fuel source."

"Well... This planet does have a lot of water." Ruben said. "And if we electrolysed it, we'd have lots of hydrogen and oxygen at our disposal. We could make a multi-stage rocket."

"The Dojo is too big for that." Tohn said.

"Nevertheless, a fuel source has been established."

"Vulture, what about your Zapfish?" Zantzi asked.

"Out of the question. We've only just got enough to supply the increased demand on our resources."

"Fair enough. Electrolysis of water it is."

"But that's only the fuel." Ruben sighed. "A fuel can do nothing if we do not think of a way to lift the Dojo and your Orbiter up."

"What about this. Ozara said. "We take each of our Landing Crafts and use those for some extra kick, then make some solid rocket boosters that can be detached?"

"That could work, but without any sort of blueprint, it'd be difficult to build one, let alone at least five."

"Still, it's possible. But what about the rift? We're not even sure if we can open it further and then close it again."

"I may be able to close it with my Limbo Warframe." Ruben said. "And if we end up inside _the_ Rift, I can probably phase us out of it."

"But that still doesn't solve the problem of getting there." Tohn growled.

"We know. We're still-"

It was at that moment the image of the Dojo flickered, speakers around the room crackling.

"Ten... Ca... Me?"

"There's and incoming signal."

"Ruben, find it."

"Already on it."

The Volt tapped away at the console, the image flickering more as he worked. A shape formed in the static, a face appearing, covered by a large headpiece.

"Tenno? Can you hear me?"

"Lotus?"

The so-called Lotus smiled. The expression was barely visible through the massive amount of static.

"Excellent, you can hear me."

"Barely, the signal is very weak, and we can't get a clear image. You're little more than a blur."

"At least you can hear me." The Lotus said. "I understand that you're having difficulty?"

"Yes. We have thought of a means of getting off the planet, but not one for getting back through the rift we fell through. Solid rocket boosters."

"I believe I can help. I can dispatch a drone carrying blueprints for these boosters, and also something to get through the rift."

"Will it keep this planet intact?"

"Yes."

Ruben looked to his clanmates, who all nodded.

"Please, send it."


	13. Chapter 13

Hours after the Lotus had sent her signal, a rumble filled the air, followed by an explosion as a drop pod hit the ground just outside the Dojo. Zantzi was the one to recover it, and he headed outside to extract the data. However, as he was working on opening the casing, sirens rang out in the distance, coming from the city. Moments later, the rain started, gentle at first, but rapidly picking up into a torrential downpour. He quickly picked up the drop pod and headed inside, transporting himself to the Observatory before continuing to open the case. When he eventually did so, he saw seven purple spheres- physical spheres of data in the form of blueprints- inside. Carefully removing them, he began to plug them into the console, watching as they disappeared. A three-dimensional model of a solid rocket booster appeared as he plugged the first six in, and a strange, crown-like device when he plugged the seventh in. The other Tenno and Octolings looked at each other in confusion.

"Six solid rocket booster blueprints, a guess they're not reusable. One... One "Void Blade", the description reads "a device used to widen existing rifts in space and time". Looks like the Lotus has stepped up the game if she has blueprints like this."

"I'm not even going to try to imagine how it works."

"Void keys, apparently." Zantzi said. "Twelve of them. A load of alloy plates, Fieldron and some Forma, too."

"What about the boosters?" Ozara asked.

"Alloy plates, Detonite, circuits. All stuff we have in the treasury, so no problems there."

"Yeah, but do we have enough for six of these?"

Looking again at the requirements, Zantzi did the math in his head.

"Do we have... Five thousand alloy plates in the treasury? That's the difference between what I have and what we need."

Ruben projected a screen from his hand, scrolling through a list of materials held by the Dojo.

"Yes, we have all the alloy plates we need. Are you alright for Detonite and Fieldron?"

"Yes. Circuits too."

"And we have enough Forma stored here. Nice."

"I'll hand these blueprints over to Ordis, since I'm the only one with a working Foundry at the moment."

Zantzi removed the blueprints from the console, placing them back into the case and closing it.

"I'll get these started. They'll probably take a day each."

He turned to the door, walking towards it. Isla followed close behind. Inside the Observatory, Vulture turned to Ozara.

"I'm going to go back to the mountain. Got things to do. Let me know if you need any help getting off-world. Where's the exit?"

Mu gestured for him to follow her, leading him out of the room. Ozara looked at Ruben.

"Do we think it can be done?"

"Easily. Those boosters are powerful. As for the rift, we'll just have to wait and see. Twelve keys won't do anything to the planet, except give it some pretty auroras when we use it. I mean, we have our landing craft as well to help with the ascent. Thrust isn't an issue at this point. It's just the wait while Zantzi's foundry completes the boosters and however long it takes for the so-called Void Blade."

"I'm just glad we can get going so quickly."

"Heh. Sitting in the past is fun and all, but we have to be extremely careful. We cannot leave any of our technology here. Who knows what might happen? Time travel over such long times is dangerous, you know."

"I'm not even going to try and rationalise it. I guess we should get to repairing the Dojo with what's left. If anything, there are certain wings we can seal off for the ascent."

"I agree."

* * *

Isla was sat on Zantzi's shoulder as he trudged across the scorched earth around the Dojo- the fires had long since burned out, courtesy of Tohn. Now, only ash drifted on the still air, settling like a grim snow. Pillars of smoke hung in the atmosphere, slowly fading as the air currents dragged the tops of the columns away. The Tenno had retrieved the additional alloy plates needed from the Treasury. Zantzi shook his head.

"We really screwed up."

"How so?"

"If I had been paying more attention instead of watching an entire space station explode, I could have avoided this mess. You'd never have met me, I'd never have irradiated a building or knocked that poor Inkling's teeth out, and there wouldn't be a crater here and now."

"If you hadn't been here, Octavio would still be alive and I, along with a load of other Octolings would be slowly rotting in a colony several hundred metres underground. Seriously, do you know how little food we had left?"

"Enlighten me."

"None. And we hadn't had any for a day and a half. Most of the lights were off, and the air purifiers had almost been completely used up. If you had crash landed maybe a day later, Vulture probably would have found more dead Octolings than living ones. So don't blame yourself; you may have made mistakes, but you've saved more lives than you've ended."

Zantzi laughed dryly. Isla frowned.

"What? What's so funny?"

"You have no idea how many lives I have ended."

Isla's frown deepened.

"Did you ever think of the name this armour carries? A Warframe? That is exactly what they were made for, and exactly what they're used for- war. These hands have likely carried more weapons than most people in this world, perhaps even all of them. I have ended millions of lives. Whether they were clones hell-bent on total system domination, greedy merchants who want nothing more than money, horrific victims of a plague who consume literally anything, rogue Tenno, corrupted soldiers with golden spikes rammed through their faces or adaptive horrors from outside the solar system, I, and by extension the other Tenno, kill them. And we never felt a shred of remorse, most of us. We did what we did in the name of balance. But I'm sure others did it for the mon-"

Isla then did what would probably be considered impossible. She climbed to her feet on Zantzi's shoulder then threw herself at his head, grabbing onto his horns and managing to overbalance him in his distracted state. He twisted as he fell, landing on his back. Isla landed on his chest, her feet either side of his head, small spirals of ash fluttering away.

"Stop. I don't care what you did in the future. I'm sure you had your reasons to. But that's your future. Not ours. Please stop depressing me with it."

"After all the lives we've ended, how can you possibly still trust us? That sort of trust gets thousands killed."

"That sort of situation only happens in a kill-or-be-killed world. This one doesn't work like that. Forgiveness still exists, you know. I'm sure there's at least one person who did you wrong and now does some form of right."

"Hah, there is exactly one. Let me up and I'll tell you."

Isla stood up, brushing off the ash that had settled on her. Zantzi did the same, and Isla quickly climbed back onto his shoulder before he walked away.

"Alright, so there are currently six factions in play in our system, other than the Tenno. There's the Grineer clones, the Corpus merchants, the Infested... Things... Corrupted denizens of the Void towers, Stalkers, and the Sentient. Now, a while ago a man called Alad V gained power in the Corpus, and began capturing Warframes to dissect and create a quadrupedal robotic proxy called the Zanuka. It didn't take long for the Lotus to catch on and order his death. He did, however, escape. He vanished for a while, before reappearing with a horde of Infested monstrosities that he called the Mutalists. His aim was to take over the Origin System and assimilate pretty much everyone in his way. Again, we pushed him back, but the Mutalists are still a problem.

"However, more recently, the chief Grineer genetic researcher, Tyl Regor, made a breakthrough. Now, across generations of clones cloned from clones, the Grineer are deteriorating. But Regor had found a way to halt the degradation and created what he called Tubemen. These Tubemen would have been far more powerful than the average Grineer lancer, but easily mass produced. Obviously, this was a problem. And two Corpus caught onto it and reached out to the Lotus. Alad V, who believed that the cure for his own Infestation lay in Regor's genetic labs, and Nef Anyo, who was probably the greediest of all greedy Corpus, who wanted to see Alad consumed by his Infestation. More Tenno supported Alad over Anyo, and now he's healed. He was in fact a great asset in saving many Tenno from the Second Dream and also the Stalker and his Acolytes, providing the means to find them."

"See? It's something. We have no wars at the moment, and that Infestion probably doesn't exist on this world. Nothing to worry about."

"No, apparently not."

The pair came into the clearing where the Liset and Zantzi's Orbiter lay. The craft looked spaceworthy, and as they approached, a figure turned its head to them- an undulating mass of blue sat where a face should have been. It was holding a shovel.

"Operator?"

"Ordis?!"

"Operator, I have finished making repairs to both the Liset and the Orbiter. Does this please the Operator?"

"Immensely, but where did you get a body?"

"Ordis built it out of polymer bundles. With it, I was able to finish repairs!"

The body was mostly skeletal, the pale polymers giving Ordis a boney appearance. The limbs were quite thin, adding to his undead appearance. Zantzi recognised the head as a standard Mag helmet, with Ordis' cubes instead of a swirling mass of particles. The hands only had three fingers, but upon closer inspection, each joint was able to twist outside the range of the average finger. Isla raised a brow.

"Where did you find a shovel?"

"Ordis had Kora retrieve one for me."

Isla looked at Zantzi.

"Who's Kora?"

"Another one of my Kubrows." Noticing Isla's confused expression, he elaborated. "She's like a dog." He turned back to Ordis. "So what you're saying is that you had Kora steal a shovel for you? What for?"

"To dig out the Liset. It can fly again!" He buzzed, and the cubes flared with light for a moment. "IF NOT FOR ALL THE TREEEEEE- but there are trees in the way."

"If you're out here, Ordis, who's inside the Liset and Orbiter?"

"Me. A copy of me. As a Cephalon, I can copy myself a limited number of times. Upon interfacing with the Orbiter Ordis, this Ordis will transfer all data to it."

"Alright, if you say so. Just be careful not to cut any of your wires."

Many wires and cables hung from the skeletal frame, some wrapped around the limbs, others looking like a serious trip hazard.

"Do not worry, Operator. Ordis will take care."

A large trench was being dug around both craft, the earth that covered them having been removed by Ordis and his shovel. Zantzi had to admit that Ordis had done a very good job excavating his craft- the dirt was piled up a short distance away. Only when Zantzi was inside the Orbiter did Isla jump from his shoulder, looking around the inside of the ship in wonder. Kora was laying on the incubator. She sniffed the air, and, recognising both a familiar and unfamiliar scent, immediately snapped to alert, grabbing the Octoling's attention. Isla took one look at Kora and gasped.

"Oh... She is so cute!"

She approached slowly, barely fazed by the fact that the Kubrow was almost as big as her and extended her arm. Kora eyed it suspiciously, sniffing it and looking to Zantzi, who gestured as if to say "go on". Isla placed her hand on Kora's neck, gently scratching her. She rumbled in approval.

"She's a Chesa Kubrow." Zantzi explained. "She's been genetically modified for fetching and retrieving. What that means is that in the field, she will run out and collect materials, energy, health and ammo for me."

"She is adorable!"

While Isla continued to pet Kora, Zantzi turned to the foundry. He plugged the blueprints the Lotus Bassett into it, waiting for them to appear on the display. Ordis immediately appeared.

"New blueprints, Operator?"

"Yes. How long will these solid rocket boosters take per unit?"

Ordis studied the print.

"Twenty four hours per unit, Operator."

"And the Void Blade?"

"Three days."

"So if you constantly make these, it'll take nine days."

"Correct, but you require additional alloy plates if I am to make all of these things."

"Already sorted. I have them here."

He dropped the material case into the hold, and Ordis flickered.

"All materials collected, beginning build."

The first blueprint disappeared, a holographic representation of a solid rocket booster appearing in the foundry. Nodding with satisfaction, he turned around to see Isla sat cross legged, Kora's head resting in her lap.

"Looks like she likes you."

Kora rumbled contentedly. Isla giggled. Zantzi sighed.

"Well, there's not a lot we can do. These blueprints are going to take days to build. We may as well head back to the mountain."

"What's that?"

Isla was pointing at the Inventory station.

"That's my inventory station. I access all my gear there."

Isla nodded.

"Can you show me a different Warframe?"

"I..." The question caught Zantzi off-guard, but he quickly recovered. "I guess so. Which one do you want to see?"

He produced a holographic list, and Isla looked at each name there before deciding.

"What does Val... Val-kire? Am I pronouncing that right?"

"Close enough."

Zantzi stepped into the inventory station, a field of energy enveloping him. His armour faded, becoming indistinct. The four horns became two backward-facing horns, and smooth, muscle-like armour replaced the traditional plates. The energy faded, and Isla giggled.

"Wow… that looks very... Feminine."

Zantzi looked down, seeing that the Gersemi skin was in equipped. He shrugged.

"You know-"

"Wow, that is disarming- you have the same voice."

Zantzi glared. Isla kept on laughing.

"Anyway, there's an entire culture where I come from which sounds so ridiculous that you'd think it didn't exist."

"What is it?"

"Basically, large numbers of Tenno will amass large amounts of Platinum in order to buy cosmetic items, or break down Prime Orokin parts to buy cosmetics from a man who calls himself Baro. The name of this culture is..." He made sure to watch Isla reaction. "Fashion Frame."

Isla immediately burst out laughing, leaning and lying on her back as she shook with mirth. Kora nudged her head with her own.

"Is it really that funny?"

"Y... Yes! Wargear for fashion! Ohh, that's hilarious!"

"I told you it was ridiculous. I wouldn't expect you to understand."

A holographic display filled with a colour grid, and Zantzi began scrolling, various parts of his armour changing colour as he did so. He settled on a scheme of mostly red, but also orange, gold and white. Nodding in satisfaction, his armour changed back to the Loki.

"Wait." Isla said. "Is there any so-called Fashion Frame for this one?"

"Yeah, I'm using it right now."

"What does it look like without it?"

He removed the Knave skin, allowing Isla to see the Loki Prime in all of its gilded glory.

"Whoa... Is that actually gold?"

"I have no idea."

"Can you show me... All of your Warframes? Please?"

Zantzi faltered- they were going to be there for a considerable length of time if he was to show her everything. He could just say no, but Isla was grinning, and had ever-so-slightly tilted her head. Zantzi swallowed.

"Alright, well, the first one I've got alphabetically is Ash Prime..."

* * *

I dream...

I dream, and as I dream, I see nothing. In all directions, nothingness- all-consuming darkness.

In my dream, I see something in the darkness. The smallest of lights, pulsing weakly. I reach out, my arm unfolding before me, stretching to the light.

It is too far away.

It matters not, there is another, maybe closer, maybe not. I reach out, but it is out of my reach. But there are more.

I dream, and as the light grows, I feel it, a mounting pressure on all sides of my body, increasing as more lights appeared and grew. There is a whisper, faint, but urgent. It grows in volume, many voices overlapping and repeating the same message over and over again. Dread flourishes inside me as I listen.

"He is coming... Act... They must not leave... He is coming... Act... They must not leave..."

The light becomes a scene, a sight of a planet beneath a hole in space. As I dream, I watch as the hole opens, and something spills forth, great in number. They crash into the planet below, darkness spreading across the surface. All the while, the whispers grew.

"Act... Act... Act... Act..."

I scream.


	14. Chapter 14

**There are spoilers for "Fracture" in here, the previous story. So if you haven't read it, you have been warned.**

"Marie?! What's wrong?"

Mira held her hands to Marie's shoulders, holding her in place as she shook, her scream tapering off.

"Are you alright? What happened?"

Marie looked at Mira, and despite her lack of eyes, the Octoling could see the panic written across her remaining features.

"Something terrible is going to happen."

"What?"

"If those Tenno attempt to leave, this entire planet will be destroyed. I saw it."

"Slow down! Spell it out to me. I don't know what you're talking about."

Marie swallowed, composing herself before she explained.

"The alien that crashed here a while ago, he was a Tenno. He's from the future. When his clan tried to send physical objects to him, it pulled their Dojo through a rift to our world, and now they're trying to get back to their time using a device sent by their guide. But if they open the rift, something else will come through and destroy this planet. I have to stop them!"

"Wait, how do you know this?"

"I was listening in on their discussion inside their Dojo. I didn't want to waste energy sending my entire body inside, but I sent a piece of myself through."

"No, not all of that, how do you know the future?"

"I think I've figured out what this tar is made of. What I'm made of."

Mira checked the clock. Eight in the morning.

"Let me eat first. Do you want some toast?"

"...sure."

Mira slid out of bed and walked out of the room, and Marie flopped onto her back, groaning.

" _He is coming_... But who is he?"

She sighed and swung her legs over the side of the bed, frowning when we realised they were longer than usual.

"Huh?"

Switching on the light, she moved to a full-length mirror and arched a brow when she saw her reflection.

"...huh."

It was like she had aged in her sleep- she was now taller and more slender, and she could feel the additional physical power that came with this older body.

 _Good thing I sleep nude, or my clothes would have been ruined._

"Wha...?"

Mira was stood in the doorway, a plate in each hand.

"Believe me, I'm as surprised as you."

"You're hot!" Mira blurted, immediately dropping the plates to clap her hands to her mouth in embarrassment. Neither plate broke, fortunately.

"I age several years overnight and that's all you have to say?"

Mira wailed in embarrassment.

"But... How?"

"I have no idea, but I am starving."

She picked up a plate from the floor, eating the toast that was on it. Mira did the same, occasionally glancing up and down Marie's new form, a blush growing on her face as she did so. She looked away, looking close to tears.

"Okay. My best guess is that I've been aged up to give me a stronger body. I mean, staying with that younger appearance had its perks, it meant people underestimated me. But I already feel stronger."

"What, like you couldn't walk through walls and rip trees out of the ground before?"

"Not like that. In fact, we can test it." Marie set the plate aside and took on a wide stance. "Hit me."

"...what?"

"Hit me."

"But... Why?"

"Call it a hunch I want to test. I want you to hit me as hard as you can. Right here." She traced an x on her stomach. Mira looked very conflicted.

"I really don't want to..."

"Come on, you won't hurt me. Hit me!"

Whining slightly, Mira stood up, setting her plate aside.

"But you've just eaten... I don't want to be cleaning up vomit at this time."

"That won't happen. Hit me." As Mira pulled back her fist, Marie spoke again. "Ah, thumb in front of fingers, not behind. It'll hurt you if you do that."

Mira adjusted the position of her thumb before slamming her fist full-force into Marie's stomach. While it wasn't like punching a wall, there was definitely much more muscle hidden beneath than before. Marie barely grunted.

"Yep. More muscle. Longer hair too."

True to her word, Marie's tentacles now reached the small of her back as opposed to her shoulder blades; she could change the length, but she decided not to. She liked how it looked.

"Okay, so who or what aged you up?" Mira asked. "This clearly isn't normal."

"No, but I stopped being normal long ago, didn't I?" She gestured to the skin where eyes used to sit ten years prior.

"So you said you think you know what the tar is made of? Apart from a range of lethal poisons?"

"Yes. And I don't like it."

Mira sat down on the bed, as did Marie. She took a steadying breath- while she did not need to breathe, it still helped to psyche herself up.

"When Octavio was executed, I saw something rose out of his... Puddle. It was a glowing sphere, bright red, and it shattered after a few seconds. That boy, Zantzi, I saw his soul too through the smoke. There were similar lights in my dream. Faint, but there."

"And these lights? What do they have to do with it?" Mira asked.

"I think they're souls. By extension, I think the tar is also made of souls, condensed down. I mean, when you mix different paints together, you get a nasty looking colour. It think this is the same thing. There's too many souls in here-" she tapped her chest- "for there to be any distinct colour. It all just blends together into a mess."

Mira looked thoughtful.

"If I could study these souls in more detail, isolated souls, I might finally be able to crack this secret the Culus had." Marie sighed. "Maybe then I could come to terms with what I am."

"Do you want to look... At my soul?"

Mira's sudden enquiry caught Marie off-guard.

"Whoa, absolutely not. I mean, anything could happen. I don't even know how I'd extract a living soul without damaging it. I-" she caught Mira's gaze. She was giving her a bemused look. "I'll try. Lie down."

Mira followed her instruction, placing her head on the pillows and sighing. Marie knelt beside her.

"I don't even know where to start with this."

She held a hand over the Octoling, using her power to sense around the inside of her body, checking every vital organ.

"I don't think the soul is something I can just- wait, hold still."

Marie placed one hand to Mira's head and held the other over her chest. Immediately, she felt a resonance. Slowly, she turned her hand up, and as her palm turned towards the ceiling, Mira gasped. A dark pink sphere slowly rose out of her chest, filling the room with an identical glow. Ever so slowly, Marie moved a hand to it, holding it in place without touching it. Mira looked at it, sucking in gasps of air. Marie looked at her with concern.

"This using hurting you, is it?"

"No, it just... Feels weird."

"Well, it's certainly brighter than whatever souls are in the tar. I wonder why..."

As she held her hand towards Mira's soul, she could sense feelings emanating from it- it wasn't something she could process- it felt like white noise, but there was a definite warmth to the feelings. Humming with interest, she looked at Mira.

"Can I touch it?"

"Umm... Very carefully."

Swallowing nervously, she quelled the slight shake her hands carried and reached forward, placing a single finger to the surface of the soul and snatching her hand away when Mira gasped.

"Did that hurt? I am so sorry!"

"No, it..." The Octoling gasped. "Felt weird, like an ache. You can... Carry on, if you want."

Arching a brow, Marie placed a finger to the surface again, and with the prolonged contact, the emotions exuded by the soul became clearer, more defined. Mira shuddered.

"As far as I can tell, this is what a soul looks like when it is pure. But why does the tar... Oh."

Marie removed her grip of the soul, and it sunk back into Mira's chest. She sat up.

"What is it?"

"I never told you, did I? Not completely. I never told you the complete truth of what happened to Raaz and myself. Do you remember when we fought the Culus, the Golem pulled you through to bait me?"

"Just about."

"Well that was just the surface. For Raaz and myself, that was our second visit to Nyos, as the Golem called it. The first time was when the kidnappings were taking place, and I was a victim. As it turns out, the Culus had us trapped in some sort of dream, but they made a mistake with Raaz that allowed us to escape by killing what the Culus were imitating. For him, that was his brother. For me, you. It didn't go to plan, and the Culus instead forcibly removed us from the dream and tortured us for trying to escape. Obviously putting us back into the dream wouldn't work, so they..." She faltered, her voice cracking as she spoke. "Beat us... Starved us... They made us watch as they pulled another from the dream and killed him. It was awful. He thought he was living his life with his girlfriend, but..." She shook. "Regardless. I think that extreme emotional trauma blackens the soul and turns it into tar. After Raaz and I escaped through the pit they were using to get into Inkopolis I think I may have gone insane. As you can see, I got better. I got better and sometime later, Vytus came to get information on the Culus, as Callie had been kidnapped. He gave me the power to break out when I bit his finger off."

"Gross."

"I think that's the difference then. Normal death equals a spherical soul, and extreme distress equals tar."

The pair sat in silence for a few seconds.

"So..." Mira started. "About that vision you had. What are you going to do?"

"I don't know. I don't know when the Tenno will attempt to leave, but it's soon, and I have to be ready. Chances are I won't be able to stop them without a fight."

"You should be fine. You're a great fighter!"

"No, I'm a good fighter. The Tenno are great fighters. My tactic will work just once against just one of them, because that's just what sneak attacks are like. No, I need to fight them on my terms."

"Well, I'll help you, if I can."

Marie smiled, wrapping her arms around her.

"Thanks Mira."

* * *

Three days later

* * *

"The boosters are coming along nicely."

"Yes, Operator. Three out of six have been built. If you like, I can give them to you so you can attach them to the Dojo."

"No, we'll wait until we have a complete set." Zantzi rebutted. "That way, Ruben can muck around with them to his heart's content until he gets them all in the right place."

"Very well, I shall keep them in the foundry for now then."

Zantzi floated in the middle of his Orbiter, and he sighed.

 _Soon._ He thought. _Soon we'll be able to go home._

He stood up, leaving the Orbiter and taking in the view outside. Ordis had been busy- he had long since finished digging out the landing craft and Orbiter, and was now cutting down trees and ripping the stumps out of the ground. It was quite a sight to behold, an unassuming skeletal robot possessing the strength needed for such feats. Zantzi watched as Ordis swung an axe- like the shovel, "retrieved" by Kora- into a tree, the notch growing bigger with each swing until it fell with a series of resounding cracks. With little hesitation, Ordis dropped the axe, _lifted_ the tree- easily fifteen metres tall- and threw it aside. Zantzi was shocked- how did the polymers that made up his structure not buckle under the load? Ordis must have seen him looking and walked over.

"What is it, Operator?"

"I'm just amazed at how much stress that body can take."

"Corpus-pattern Polymer bundles have an incredible tensile and compressional strength. Lifting loads like this is just below the limit."

"If you say so."

Ordis walked back towards the remaining stump and crouched down, forcing his hands into the ground before lifting, the ground bulging as the roots of the stump were dislodged. Laughing quietly at the casual display of strength, Zantzi turned away, spotting a figure at the edge of the clearing. They saw him and approached.

"Aegis."

"Where've you been for the past three days, soldier?"

"Guarding my ship."

Her eyes narrowed.

"What the hell for? You were content with leaving it alone since you got here, what gives?"

"It'll be easier if I show you."

He motioned for her to follow him, and she stepped into the Orbiter behind him. Zantzi pointed to the foundry.

"This is why. We're making the things we need to leave the planet."

"I see. But guarding it from what?"

"Anything. Everything. Inklings that can walk through walls. Any threats, really."

"Well, if it's that damn important, at least tell us next time. Or do I need to dish out a punishment to remind you of what happens when you piss me off?"

"No!" Zantzi answered, perhaps a little too quickly. "No, I don't need reminding."

"Good." Aegis' smile faded and she pinched the bridge of her nose. "Thinking of punishment, there were dissenters at the mountain. A small cadre of Octolings were trying to force people into some sort of militia. From what I've heard, it sounds like they were calling themselves Wrath, and wanted to stage a coup-d'état and lead a strike against Inkopolis. Obviously the four of them were painfully under equipped for such ballsy promises we shut them down once Isla tipped us off. We caught three of them in the act and found the leader later. I overheard them talking in the cells, talking about how they're expecting to be executed for treason."

"Don't." Zantzi said. "If you execute them, you're no better than Octavio. But clearly we can't exile them. Do what you did to me."

"Explain."

"Work them to exhaustion and then dump them in a cell. They'll be too tired to escape and you still get to make an example of them."

"Ha! That's what I was thinking. I'll get to that later. Are you sure you're alright out here on your own?"

"Yes, I'll be fine. You best get going anyway, I hear there's a storm rolling in."

She coughed, pointing to her outfit, her hood and the goggles hanging around her neck.

"It's not a problem for me. Hydrophobic covering, a hood, mask and goggles. It'll take more than a little rain to stop me."

"If you say so."

The pair stood in silence for a few minutes, watching Ordis as he methodically swung the axe into the nearest tree, the sound bouncing off the remaining trees in the area.

"Why don't you come back to the mountain for a bit?" Aegis asked. "Don't mistake my question for concern, I'm just curious."

"It's as I said. The stuff being built here is extremely valuable. I need to guard it, and I can't just leave one of my Kubrows to do it."

"Damn, and I thought you'd be able to help me make an example of the dissenters. You have been here longer than your friends, after all. And out of the five of you, you're the second sanest and least likely to cripple one of the dissenters."

"Why only second?"

"Because that Mu hasn't spoken a word since she got here. It's a bit creepy. She's refused to take part, and the other three are nowhere to be found. Can't you have one of them guard this for you?"

"I... Guess so?"

He opened up his communications screen- he had finally repaired it following the Dojo's crash- and selected Ozara. She picked up almost immediately.

"Yeah?"

"Can you take over and guard the foundry for me? Some business has come up at the mountain that I need to take care of."

"Yeah, give me a minute."

Barely a minute later, the sound of engines filled the air, and Ozara's Scimitar flying overhead and dropping her to the ground. She looked at Zantzi, and then to Aegis before nodding, walking into the Liset and taking on a meditative pose.

"None shall come near this place." She said, her voice appearing in Zantzi's mind and Aegis', judging by her startled expression. She soon snapped out of it, turning to Zantzi.

"Do you have any non-lethal weapons? Preferably something not bladed."

"I believe I do."

* * *

"Ladies and gentlemen! Before you stand the four dissenters who apparently want a fight!"

Four powerful floodlights lit up four Octolings stood at the base of a glass arena- two male, two female. They glared at the crowd and at the figure stood at the rim of the arena. A floodlight light them, revealing Aegis holding a microphone. She grinned.

"Okay, so here's the deal. If you can get out of the arena, you're free to go. But! There is to be no super jumping, or I will personally throw you back into the pit myself. Got it?"

The dissenters looked between themselves uncertainly. One of them, a young man, looked up at Aegis and frowned.

"Looks like we'll be going free then."

"Will you now? Bear in mind that only the people who get out of the pit can leave. Oh, and you do have weapons, since you were asking earlier."

Aegis snapped her fingers, and four metal staves were thrown into the arena. They picked them up, scowling at the unconventional tools.

"What the hell is this?"

"Your weapons. We can't just give you something you're good with, can we? Now, you should easily be able to get out now. So, without further ado... Begin!"

A hanging rope dropped into the arena, several knots up its length- an easy way out. Shrugging, the four ran over, the one who spoke immediately leaping to the highest knot he could reach, his stave dropping to the arena floor. When he was about to pull himself over the top, a ball of energy exploded just above him, and he was knocked from the rope with a yell. The other three looked up just in time to watch Zantzi wielding the Jat Kittag drop from the lighting rigs, crashing into the ground and blasting them across the arena.

"Oh, I forgot to mention." Aegis said. "You're not alone in there." Zantzi twirled his hammer ominously. "Maybe this will teach you that your actions have consequences."

Zantzi was not using his Loki- instead he had opted for the more fearsome-looking Valkyr. A Sonicor was attached to his wrist. He kicked the dropped staff over to the one Octoling who had no weapon, and allowed the Jat Kittag to hang loosely in his grasp, the propulsion system in the head humming quietly. The Octoling picked it up nervously.

"Now that everyone is here... Begin!"


	15. Chapter 15

**"Hunger games" you say? I'm not sure how you made that link. And yes, Rathuum did have some influence on Aegis' speech in this chapter.**

Letting out a deafening warcry, Zantzi took on a ready position, spinning the Jat Kittag in his hands. One of the Octolings made several rapid hand signals, and the dissenters spread out, circling around Zantzi.

"Looks like Taka has taken the initiative, making the tactical decision to encircle Zantzi!"

The Octoling, Taka- Zantzi made a mental note of his dark blue tentacles- snapped his fingers, and all four closed in. In response, Zantzi cast a Rip Line, pulling himself out of the circle and swinging his hammer into Taka as he went, forcing the air out of him and knocking him flat. Zantzi latched to the wall, firing his Sonicor at the other three, disrupting their charge and forcing them to dodge. Taka made frantic signals at them, and one changed direction, heading for the rope. Zantzi ran around the wall of the arena, landing in front of the girl.

"And the gambit has failed! Coda is face-to-face with Zantzi!"

Coda had green tentacles, and Zantzi could see her sweating from his position a few metres away. She looked at the staff in her hands and held it up in front of her.

"Is she going to be the first to attack?"

Coda charged forward, screaming as she went and lunged with the staff- it bounced off Zantzi's shield, and he took hold of it, ripping it out of her grasp and using it like a sword, delivering a swift combo before knocking her flying, throwing the staff after her. She landed next to her teammates, and she staggered to her feet, rubbing the side of her face where the staff had connected.

"Okay, I think Zantzi has it too easy. Are you four even trying? Let's make it slightly easier."

The arena rumbled, the walls rising slightly, allowing wooden sheets to cover the ground. The Octolings' eyes lit up.

"And now, something so you can actually use the new floor."

An ink tank landed in the arena, and Coda picked it up, shrugging it onto her back. She frowned.

"This thing only has sprinklers."

Aegis laughed.

"Of course! We can't make it too easy, now can we? After all..." Her voice dropped drastically. "It's your fault you're here."

Each of Coda's teammates took hold of her, their colours changing to match hers. She then threw a sprinkler, disappearing into the ink. Zantzi paced around the neon-green circle that formed, waiting for one of the dissenters to break the surface. When one did, he was too slow to stop them from throwing another sprinkler, or to pull them out. Grunting, he stepped into the circle, spinning his hammer impatiently. Their attack was coordinated and brutal, and their initial strike actually managed to break his shield, forcing him to flip backwards as the dissenters emerged, chasing after him. He laughed under his breath, dropping to his knees and allowing himself to be pulled through space.

 _This is going to be good._

Aegis also smiled, as she was privy to Zantzi's plan to dishearten the dissenters. When Zantzi's power surged, it was not a Void Pulse that emerged from his body, but a Mind Spike, and two of the Octolings, Taka and one he did not know the name of, were caught by one of the waves of energy. He cut the ability short immediately after, retreating to the wall and latching to it. The audience went silent as the two Octolings doubled over, clutching their heads before they straightened up, turning on their two allies and attacking them, much to their panic and confusion.

"And Zantzi has unleashed his Mind Spike! What a game-changer! Now, what this nasty little ability does is muddle the perception of those affected, making them fight each other; allies, enemies, it does not matter to them anymore!"

"Kara? What the hell? We're friends!" Coda screeched.

Kara's golden eyes zeroed in on Coda, and she attacked relentlessly. Taka turned to the final Octoling, who simply made a break for the rope. Zantzi made no attempt to stop him, watching Taka close the gap with ease, thrusting forward with his staff and tripping the fleeing Octoling. They hit the ground hard, sliding across the metal floor and coming to a stop under the rope. Taka approached, taking him by the foot and dragging him back to the centre of the arena.

Coda had manage to get the upper hand over Kara, and had pinned her down. She slowly bore all her weight on the staff between them, forcing it down onto Kara's neck, watching as her confused friend's eyes bulged slightly before she passed out after a few seconds. Coda immediately relented, and failed to dodge a flying kick from Taka. She recovered quickly, her blue eyes staring up at his red. When she made an attempt to rise, Taka kicked her again. She reeled, shaking off the dizziness.

"Mako? Little help?" She wheezed.

The boy's green eyes blinked rapidly as he steadied himself. He picked up his staff and approached Taka from behind, and swung. As Taka moved to block, Coda swept her legs under Taka's knocking him to the floor. She immediately tried to pull the same technique she had used on Kara, bearing down with her staff and the intention of choking him into unconsciousness. However, she hadn't accounted for Taka being stronger than her, and found that the staff was being pushed back up. Coda suddenly fell forward, barely stopping her head from hitting the ground. Mako had took the opportunity to strike Taka across the head, knocking him out cold. When Coda looked at him, he shrugged. Remembering the Tenno's presence in the arena, the pair ran for the rope. Zantzi threw a rip line and pulled himself over the arena, sitting at the top of the rope. When the two Octolings realised he was there, he tilted his head, allowing Hysteria to grow on one hand, and cut through the rope. He landed in the arena, let out a paralytic screech and with a single, decisive blow, knocked the final Octolings across the arena. They did not stand up again.

"Looks like the dissenters are down! Two of them by their own hands, no less." The walls dropped, four of Vulture's scavengers stepping in to drag the unconscious Octolings away. Aegis threw something towards Zantzi. "Take this."

His claws faded and he snatched the object from the air. It was a small rectangular card.

"What is this?" He asked.

"For your troubles. Since you can actually walk, if you wanted to buy something from Inkopolis rather than steal it, you can always take a cloak and walk right in. You'll fit right in."

* * *

Zantzi was sat in his room, meditating. Three Warframes sat against the wall behind him, all kneeling- Frost, Loki and Valkyr. They all shared a red-oriented colour scheme. He opened his eyes when there came a knock at the door.

"Come in."

The door opened, and Isla stepped into the room. She was wearing a heavy-looking cloak, and carried a second one folded in her arms. The material, despite being black, shined slightly in the light.

"What's the occasion?" He asked, arching a brow at the cloak.

"I was thinking that Aegis told you that you could use that card in Inkopolis. You've never actually been there, have you?"

"Closest I've been was the power generating facility nearby. No, I haven't been there."

"Well, neither have I. I want to check it out. I'll fit in just fine, but you're going to stick out." She held up the cloak. "Put it on."

Zantzi took the garment and unfolding it, frowning when it looked like a perfect fit. When he put it on, he found that it was a perfect fit. He looked at Isla.

"How did you get the right size?"

"Lucky guess." She shrugged. "The reason why it's shiny is because it has a hydrophobic coating. It's made for Inklings and Octolings, so we need to protect ourselves. And there's a few inside pockets, so I'd put the card in one of them if I were you."

Zantzi unzipped the cloak slightly and slotted the card into one of the pockets.

"Alright. How are we getting there?"

"You are going to fly us there."

"That's a big assumption to make. I don't know if the Liset can fly yet."

"Why don't we find out?"

Rolling his eyes, Zantzi pinged Ordis, and his reply was nearly instant.

"Operator?"

"Can the Liset fly?"

"As far as I know, yes. In fact, it could do with a test flight. The stealth systems are all in order too."

Isla smirked. Zantzi rolled his eyes again. All of his excuses were gone.

"Tell Ozara to keep guarding the Orbiter. Bring the Liset to the mountain. Keep to subsonic speeds to avoid attracting undue attention."

Zantzi closed the communication and opened the door, holding it open for Isla to leave.

"Going to the city at night." She said. "So, it's a date?"

Zantzi looked away. Isla giggled, taking him by the hand and almost dragged him outside. The Liset was already waiting for them, its metallic red coat sparkling in the moonlight. The ramp was down, and the pair headed in. Inside, it was as if it never crashed. All of the panels were in pristine condition, the displays all functional and the window intact and flawless. Isla inspected each display, her hand wavering mid-air, like she was uncertain whether or not she should touch anything. Apparently having made her mind up, she reached forward and touched the codex, selecting the "Universe" tab while Zantzi was preoccupied with feeding Ordis coordinates. She selected the "Weapons" screen, arching a brow when she saw the vast list of armaments appear. Deciding that she didn't want to look through them all, she stepped away from the codex and looked at the market console, frowning when the only thing on the display was a scathing "out of range".

"That would be the market." Zantzi explained, having finished giving the coordinates. "I expected it not to work, since I'm apparently no longer in my own time."

"What sort of stuff did the market sell?"

"Weapons, resources, cosmetics, lots of things. Sit against the wall, we're about to take off and the ship accelerates really quickly."

Isla did as instructed, sitting with her back against the wall next to the ramp. Zantzi did the same on the other side.

"Head back." He said.

The ground lurched as the craft took off, rotating slowly as it angled itself towards the destination. A brief whine preceded the acceleration, an intense G-force pressing against Zantzi and Isla- it was a completely alien feeling to both of them- Zantzi had never felt anything like it. Isla on the other hand was laughing with exhilaration. He was astounded as to how she found something so uncomfortable so laughable.

It took them less than half a minute to reach Inkopolis, the craft slowing much more gradually so that its passengers were not thrown forward. The Liset touched down, the ramp lowering and the engines cutting out. Isla exited first, stepping into the night. Zantzi followed, adjusting his cloak and making sure it sat correctly on his shoulders. When he stepped off the ramp, it lifted, lying flush with the rest of the craft before the entire vehicle disappeared from view, much to Isla's surprise.

"Active camouflage." He explained. "There are lots of things that will shoot at this on sight. It's better to be safe."

Zantzi looked towards the city. They had landed a short distance outside, about five hundred metres from the first buildings. Isla took off ahead of him, walking towards the city and its lights, and Zantzi matched her pace.

"The first thing you need to do is find out how much money is on that card. There should be a bank close to the centre of the city."

Plane became tarmac as they walked, buildings continually growing taller as they navigated the streets. The number of creatures roaming the streets also grew as they drew closer to the centre, and Zantzi found himself increasingly thankful that the cloak he wore had such a large hood with which he could hide his face- he would definitely stick out like a sore thumb amongst the urchin, anemome, jellyfish, shrimp, octopus and squid-like denizens. Isla had no such qualms, walking with her hood down, taking in the sights starry-eyes while avoiding the increasingly-dense crowds. She pulled on Zantzi's cloak.

"Look. That sign over there says bank."

"I can't read it."

"Well it says bank, so we're going to check it out. Come on."

Isla practically dragged Zantzi through the crowd, ending up in front of a glass-fronted building. She wasted no time, taking advantage of the lack of queue and heading straight for the desk. The shrimp behind blinked bemusedly.

"Can I help you?" He asked. He looked at Zantzi. The Tenno's orange eyes were the only visible feature beneath the hood, along with some glowing scars. "We have a no-headgear policy in here. Take the hood off or leave."

The pair looked at each other. Isla spoke up.

"He wears it for religious reasons. He's with me. Is that alright?"

The banker grumbled under his breath.

"Fine. What can I help you with?"

"We would like to check the balance on this card."

Zantzi reached into his cloak to retrieve the card, noticing the banker tensing up slightly despite the screen that sat between them. He placed the card on the turntable. The table turned, and the banker swiped the card in a reader before returning it.

"Fifteen-thousand. Anything else?"

"No. Thank you." Zantzi said.

He and Isla left the bank. When outside, Isla turned to Zantzi.

"I have never seen a person like that before! What _was_ he, with all those colours and eyes?"

"If I had to guess, I'd say he was a mantis shrimp." Zantzi explained. "A living fossil that has the fastest punch in the world."

"...huh. Well, now we know how much money is on that card. Should we get something to eat?"

"Definitely, since you dragged me out before I could get something to eat. Was this all part of your plan?"

"Maybe."

The pair made their way back towards the centre of the city, making their way through increasingly densely packed streets.

"What is happening?" Zantzi asked. "I don't understand how there are so many people out so late."

"I think the music has something to do with it."

Zantzi tilted his head slightly, listening and hearing the bass line of music in the distance.

"Should we check it out?"

Instead of answering, Isla took Zantzi by the hand and began making her way to the source of the noise. Garnering many strange looks- Zantzi put this down to the cloaks they were wearing- they forced their way through the crowd, eventually emerging into the central plaza. Two trucks were stood in the middle of the plaza, and the two news presenters Zantzi had seen during the execution of Octavio were each stood on one. The girl, Ara, was currently singing along to a very upbeat song, the crowd bouncing in sync with the rhythm. The boy, Flint, was silent, and was busy altering a drum kit, moving the drums and cymbals around until he nodded in satisfaction. Ara finished her song, and the crowd erupted into cheers, many of the crowd waving glow sticks in the air.

"Thank you, thank you!" She said, taking a quick drink before continuing. "Now, I believe that Flint here has a song for you. And I know some of you will be very excited about that."

The crowd around Flint's truck rumbled with collective laughter. Ara grinned. Flint stretched his fingers, placing his feet on the pedals of his kit.

"Well then, I think he's just about ready. You know the drill, people!"

A single guitar note filled the air, and Flint's hands started moving, his sticks glancing over the many cymbals of the kit, a metallic whisper slowly building in volume as the backing track grew. Zantzi watched with some confusion as a hole opened in the crowd.

"What is that?" He asked Isla. When there was no reply he turned and saw that at some point she had left his side. Looking up again, he spotted her cloak at the edge of the circle as the introduction of Flint's song reached a crescendo. Two flashes of light preceded the sudden intensification of the song, Flint battering out a high-speed heavy rhythm. At the same time, the circle collapsed, those taking part hurling themselves across the rapidly closing space, bouncing off one another. Zantzi lost sight of Isla in the undulations of the crowd, groaning in annoyance. He decided that it would better if she made her way back to him, as she knew exactly where he was.

Several minutes later, Flint's song ended with an exceptionally chaotic drum fill, the crowd somehow still having the energy to cheer despite having been leaping at each other for the duration of the song.

"You really aren't a party person, are you?"

Zantzi turned to the source of the voice. A girl was stood in front of him, her tentacles a bright shade of yellow. She was wearing a rather gaudy outfit. Zantzi felt like he'd seen her before. It suddenly clicked into place.

"You're-"

"Ara, yes. It's amazing the wonders a simple change in colour can pull. Shh! Don't tell the others."

"Then who-" Zantzi looked up at the truck on which Ara had been stood, and saw it was empty. "Your secret is safe with me."

When Zantzi did not speak further, Ara rolled her eyes- a vibrant shade of green.

"You're weird, you know?"

"Excuse me?"

"Normally, eeeeeeveryone is dancing to our music, and most people aren't as tall as you."

Zantzi was at least a head taller than Ara. He nodded in affirmation.

"Also, most people don't wear reeeeeaaaaally nice cloaks like that. It's so cool! All I can see are glowing eyes!"

"Good. That means the hood is doing its job."

"Why though?" She asked. "I mean, it just draws attention. Case and point." She pointed to herself.

"Believe me, this draws much less attention than the alternative."

"Hah, keep telling yourself that. So, what are you then? Are you an alien?"

"What? No." He lied.

"Prove it." Ara said, her eyes narrowing as she smirked. "Take off the hood."

 _Great job Zantzi, you've gone and backed yourself into a corner._

 _Ozara?_

 _Tell her again, I've got your back._

"No, because I'm not an alien." Zantzi said. This time, the words had a visible effect, and Ara's eyes momentarily glowed as Ozara altered her thinking from afar. The Inkling shrugged.

"Eh, whatever. Well, I have to go before Flint gets mad, so see you around, mysterious-guy-who-may-be-an-alien."

Ara slipped back into the crowd, and Zantzi let out a sigh of relief.

 _When did you get so careless?_ Ozara inquired.

 _I have no clue._

 _Well make sure you sort it out._

 _I will do. Now please do not intrude on my night out with Isla._

 _Oh? A date, is it?_

 _No, it was her idea._

 _And I suppose she dragged you and your Liset all the way to the city, did she?_

 _...shut up._

He heard Ozara laugh scathingly.

 _It's fine, Zantzi. No-one is judging you for going native._

Zantzi stopped listening as Isla emerged from the crowd, a film of sweat across her forehead. He realised that it was the same colour as her tentacles. She was breathing heavily.

"Enjoying yourself?"

"Oh yeah. But need food. Let's go, I was talking to a few people, they've told me where the good places are."


	16. Chapter 16

**Fun Fact: Some of this chapter was written at the top of Kinder Scout.**

 **And to respond to thetyrant67, since we don't actually know much about the Tenno as people, it's hard to say what their abilities are like outside the 5 Focus paths. Also, if you spent most of your time safely inside a pod controlling high-tech powered armour, suffice to say you'd be pretty scared when you were face to face with someone who was physically stronger than you _without_ a Warframe. And if someone's offering to help, you don't just turn on them, which is why it may seem like Ozara, Ruben, Tohn and Mu are being pushed around. They're keeping up appearances. **

**But that's just my own headcanon. On with the story!**

"Welcome! How many?"

"Table for two, please."

"Certainly, follow me."

Zantzi and Isla were seated in a booth, and two menus were placed in front of them. Despite the restaurant being packed, it was relatively quiet. They made their orders and were told that their food may take a while, because it was so busy. Isla waved it off, saying that it was fine. The waiter left the table, leaving the pair alone. Zantzi kept his hood up. They sat quietly for a few minutes before Isla spoke.

"So... What's been happening with your friends? They all seem pretty excited about something. What's going on?"

"Well, our friend and guide, the Lotus, sent a message to us several days ago. Don't ask me how, but she managed. She sent us a way to get back to our own time, along with a few rocket boosters. One for my Orbiter, five for the Dojo. And something she called a Void Blade to open some sort of portal, I think. What it means is that soon, we can leave and be out of the way. It'll be like we were never here- aside from two craters, of course."

"Oh..." Isla said, looking down. Zantzi frowned.

"What's wrong?"

"It's going to be strange. I mean, alien life was here and just vanished, and only the Octolings of the mountain know what you really look like."

"There are three other people who know."

"That's not it. Only we know what you're like. I mean, there's nothing cute about a suit of armour."

"It will be better for this world if we leave. There's no telling what our technology could do in the wrong hands. Even Void keys can be used as a weapon, and they're keys, for crying out loud."

"I'm... Going to miss you."

Zantzi knew Ozara was listening, but was surprised when she said nothing.

"I... I am, too." He said back.

They sat in silence again.

"Do you..." Isla started, unsure if she should continue. "Do you think I could come with you?"

"Out of the question. It is far too dangerous."

"But what's out there that's worse than things on this planet?"

"You want a full explanation?"

"Yes."

Zantzi sighed before speaking.

"First, there's the Grineer Empire- a race of clones who are decaying due to genetic decay, so many have technological enhancements. They simply want to rule everything and send hundreds, if not thousands of soldiers to enforce the will of their Queens. Next, there's the Corpus. Money obsessed merchants who are fuelling this endless war. They make extensive use of tech weapons and robots to do the dirty work. Then there's the Infested. These aberrations are the most dangerous, as simply coming into contact with a single spore is enough to kill you as the disease spreads through your entire body and you join the ever-growing horde. There are other factions, like the Corrupted, who populate the Void Towers and were once part of their respective factions before existing Corrupted rammed a gilded spike through their face. There's the Sentient, adaptive oddities that hate the Tenno with a passion and there's the Stalker and his Acolytes. I honestly don't understand what that guy's deal is, but he occasionally appears out of nowhere to attack us."

"Aside from the obvious, which is death, why can't I come with you?"

"Because depending on who finds you, you'll be killed in one of many horrific ways. The Grineer will torture you, the Corpus will dissect you, the Infestation will absorb you which will send you mad with pain, the Corrupted will assimilate you through a spike to the face, while you're still conscious no less, and the Stalker and the Sentient will just kill you. I can't let you come with me knowing that one of these things may happen to you."

"I see... I feel bad for you, having to go back to that." Isla said. "But do you have to go back? What difference does five Tenno make?"

"Considerable. All Tenno are sworn to uphold the balance of power in the system as it currently stands- an approximately equal power split between the Corpus and Grineer, and the Infestation eradicated wherever it appears. The Stalker's location is unknown, as is the Sentient Hunhow's. The Corrupted never leave their towers, so they're not an active threat."

"So why don't you just focus on say, the Grineer, wipe them out, and then do the same to the Corpus?"

"Because the moment at which the Grineer are defeated, the Corpus can devote their full attention to wiping out the Tenno, and there are not enough of us to defend against that magnitude of an assault. And wiping them out simultaneously is also out of the question, as there's not enough Tenno to whittle the two empires down. They'll just regrow."

"So that's why you fight for balance, because you cannot have it any other way."

"Pretty much." Zantzi nodded. "But even if you want to help, you cannot. Because you do not have the power of the Void, your first death out there will be permanent. And death by Infestation in particular is irreversible because we think they absorb their victims. Do you understand? I can't let you come with me because I'll end up losing you. And the loss of an innocent is a detestable thing."

"I... Understand. I think."

"Tonight isn't the night to be thinking about that. We should be having fun. Immediately after eating, that is."

"Wow, Zantzi, looking for fun? That's a first."

"What? I can enjoy myself can't I?"

"Well, it's just that your definition of 'enjoying yourself' is to sit and meditate. Or read. Or both! You really don't know how to party, do you?"

"Maintaining a perpetual power struggle often leaves little time for parties, as you would expect. I have picked up on the fact that parties appear to be all you and by extension the rest of this world care about, but I just don't have the experience to blend in. That being said, I'm sure one of the many Warframes I have could put on some special effects."

"Oh!" Isla closed her eyes, thinking for a moment. "Mirage, was it? The one that makes illusions?"

"Yes. In fact, many Tenno refer to her Prism as a disco ball, so I can see why you think it'd be good for parties."

"Next time there's a party at the mountain, you are going to be around for it. And you're going to show up and put on a light show."

"Providing I'm around for it. Ordis was building the fourth booster out of six, and there's the Void Blade to build yet, so I'll be here for the next five or six days."

"There is definitely going to be a party in that time. There is no escape."

Zantzi laughed.

"I guess not."

The waiter appeared at their table, holding two glasses and a bottle.

"Would either of you like some wine?"

Isla laughed curtly.

"Of course, but how did you know we're over the drinking age?"

The waiter smirked.

"Just a gut feeling. No kid, squid or otherwise, would wear a cloak like that."

"I'm not sure whether to feel flattered or insulted."

"Neither. Enjoy your wine."

He placed the bottle on the table and set one glass in front of Isla and the other in front of Zantzi before leaving. Isla poured a small amount into her glass and sipped on it, nodding in approval before pouring herself some more and offering the bottle to Zantzi. He looked at it with some suspicion.

"What is it?"

"What, you don't have wine where you come from?"

Zantzi blinked.

"Perpetual power struggle."

Isla snorted.

"I've changed my mind. If you don't have alcohol, then I really don't want to go with you."

"So what is this stuff?"

"It's a drink made by fermenting a certain type of fruit juice. The fermentation process creates alcohol. There's loads of different types of varying strength, but drink too much of any and you'll end up drunk."

Noticing Zantzi's bemused expression under his hood, she elaborated.

"Sloshed, pissed, plastered, wankered, hammered, are none of these ringing a bell?"

"The only time I've heard someone referred to being hammered is when they've literally been smashed with a hammer."

"You know what? Never mind. Just try some."

She poured some of the red wine into his glass, and he sipped it, arching a brow at the taste.

"This tastes... Really good, actually."

Isla smiled as he poured himself a full glass.

"See? It's good to try things. Just stay the hell away from drugs. Where alcohol might make you do things you normally wouldn't, drugs can kill you."

"Noted."

"And don't drink too much of that. We'll have to walk back to your ship later."

* * *

Marie was perched on a rooftop, overlooking Ara and Flint work the crowd into a frenzy. She had to admit, the pair were a least as good as she and Callie had been, and the crowd adored them. Flint's ability to play an instrument while singing astounded Marie, and Ara's endless supply of enthusiasm and dance moves was as equally impressive. The crowd erupted into cheers as they finished a song, culminating in an impressive display of fire from the trucks. Marie stood up when someone landed on the roof behind her, and chuckled when Callie embraced her from behind, the excitable Inkling squealing with delight.

"Yay! You're not small anymore! Now I can hug you properly!"

"Hi, Cal." Marie turned around completely to face Callie who was practically vibrating with excitement, as per usual. "So, how have you been?"

"Hey, we've got that the wrong way around! You're the one who was in hospital several days ago. And aged like ten years overnight."

"I was fine, Mira's now fine, no more have died because of the whole radiation thing. How have you been?"

"I've been alright, Vytus is alright, but what about you and Mira?" She leaned forward, and Marie saw the mischievous glint in her eyes. "Have you banged in this body yet?"

"That better not have been an offer."

"Oh, gross! Forget I even asked."

"And no, I haven't. _Yet_. I've been busy learning new tricks."

"Oh yeah? Like what?"

"I guess you could call it magic."

Callie's smile faded and was replaced with a look of incredulousness.

"Magic."

"Magic."

To demonstrate, Marie approached Callie, placed her left hand on her back to support her and placed her right on her chest.

"Whoa, uh, Marie, personal space? I mean, we're cousins but-"

"Shh, concentrating."

"Concentrating on whaaaaa..."

Callie trailed off when a vibrant, purple glow emerged from her chest around Marie's hand, and allowed herself to be lowered, supported by Marie's strength until the pair were sat securely on the roof. At that point, Marie moved her hand away and curled her fingers, Callie's soul lifting itself out of her body. She stared at it, weakly raising a hand towards it.

"What... Is... That?"

"Before I tell you, I need you to tell me what it feels like when I touch it, alright?"

Callie nodded, and Marie reached towards the sphere. When she made contact, Callie's breathing sped up markedly.

"It's like... I don't know, a... Pressure? It's kind of... Nice..."

"Anything else?"

"N-no..."

Marie relinquished her hold of the soul, and it sank back into Callie's body. She gasped and breathed heavily.

"That... Is so cool! How did you do that? Can you teach me?"

"Magic, and no. At least, I don't think anyone else can do this. Mostly because I'm probably the most powerful person on the planet right now. Raaz might be able to."

"How is Raaz, anyway? Last I heard he got his beak smashed in."

"Oh, he's fine. He refused to accept false teeth, so he crystallised some tar in his mouth instead. He's now got black teeth, but he doesn't mind. He has expressed a desire to sink them into the boy who did it to him, however."

"A boy did that?"

"Said boy had powered armour, and now there's five of them total. And they're planning something that, whether they mean to or not, is going to end the world."

The pair sat in silence for a few seconds before Callie burst out laughing. Marie scratched the back of her head.

"Yeah, that sounded better in my head."

"Wait, you're serious?"

"Deadly."

"How can you be sure?"

"Remember the Culus?"

"Don't remind me."

"Too bad. Turns out the tar is made of souls, and a few of them were human shamans. From like, eons ago."

"And what, they told you the world was going to end if the aliens carry on doing what they're doing?"

"Pretty much."

"Okay, let's say I suspend my disbelief for the moment; how do we stop them?"

"It's honestly hard to say. I need to know exactly what they're doing, but from what I've picked up so far, one of them, one of the Tenno uses armour that has psychic abilities. If I dig too deep, she'll know. If I get too close, she'll detect me since I'm a big damn blob of mental energies. Until they're about to execute their plan, I-" Marie tilted her head, sensing a familiar soul. "Here we go."

"What is it? What do you see?"

"The boy. There is someone with him, and he..." Marie smirked. "He is rather intoxicated."

"You can tell all that from this distance?"

"I can sense it. Come on, we're going to follow them."

Using her senses, Marie remained close to Zantzi and the girl with him, staying out of sight by roof hopping. Callie managed to keep pace.

"So what are we going to do?"

"We're going to take them to the alleys and I'm going to look into his soul. It'll have the same effect as reading his mind, but it's a lot more risky for all parties involved."

"How so?"

"Because if I screw up, I don't know what'll happen. I could shatter his soul, I could absorb him. A number of other things could happen, but I don't know what."

Marie watched as the pair stepped into an alleyway and turned a corner.

"They're practically doing our job for us."

Marie took hold of Callie and the pair sank through the roof, reappearing in the next alley.

"That will never stop feeling wrong."

Marie dug around inside her coat, pulling out a second half-mask. She handed it to Callie.

"Wear this, go that way and stop them. I'll come in from behind and take them by surprise."

"You're not going to hurt them, are you?" Callie asked, concern written across her features as she held the half-mask.

"No, I'll do my best not to hurt them. Now hurry."

* * *

"Okay, I know there's a first time for everything, but I didn't take you to be this much of a lightweight."

Isla was currently supporting Zantzi as he struggled to place one foot in front of the other.

"Two glasses of wine and you're like this? Maybe you shouldn't drink at parties."

"N-nnnno! I can han..." He trailed off, trying to form his words correctly. "Handle it..."

His eyes and scars were glowing more intensely, to a point where his face was almost visible. It was intriguing, but there was no way Isla would be able to hold a conversation with the drunken Tenno. She directed him off the busy streets and into the alleys, where she knew there would be very few people. She did her best to keep him from walking into walls. When someone stepped out from a separate alley up ahead, she pulled him to a halt, waiting for them to pass. She tightened her grip on Zantzi ever-so-slightly when the person- a young woman wearing a half mask and dark tentacles down to her back- approached.

"Sorry." She said. "There's a crime scene being investigated up ahead. I can't let you pass."

"Hey!" Zantzi shouted suddenly, pointing a wavering finger at the woman. "If the four of you... Think you can stop us... You've got... Another thing... Coming..."

"Sorry, but I need you to turn around and to back the way you came."

Something about the situation felt wrong to Isla. The slight downturn of the woman's mouth. The mask she was wearing. The distinctive lack of police or investigative identification. She frowned when she saw a black limb reaching for Zantzi's hood, and could do nothing when several similar tendrils wound themselves around her arms, legs, eyes and finally, mouth, muffling her outraged and terrified screams. She was pulled against the wall, unable to move or see. She struggled against her bonds to no avail, and heard Zantzi grunting in distress.

"Please don't struggle." A different voice said. "I just have to know."

"Is this really okay?"

"No, it isn't. But the fate of this world could depend on it."

Callie watched the Octoling struggle, the unmistakable glint of tears apparent on her face. Her expression falling, Callie walked over to Isla, placing a hand on her face and snatching it back when she flinched away with a yelp.

"I'm sorry, but I trust her."

Callie almost tore into the tendrils herself when the girl whimpered, but she forced herself to look away, trusting Marie's judgement. Marie had a hand over the boy's chest, and a deep red light lit the alley, Zantzi shuddering as she delved into his soul. He glowed brightly for a second, a pulse of energy lifting Marie into the air. She anchored herself in place with more tendrils and continued her scrying. She soon nodded, loosening her grip and watching the Tenno's soul vanish. Marie quickly took Callie by the hand and moved to the roof, releasing her captives from above. Isla gasped, quickly composing herself when she saw Zantzi slumped against the wall, staring into space and breathing rapidly.

"Zantzi, are you alright? Are you alright?"

"She was inside... Inside me... Inside my head, my soul... She was inside..."

From above, Callie watched as the girl embraced the near-catatonic Tenno. She turned to Marie.

"Can't we remove the memories of what just happened?"

Marie frowned.

"I can try. But I'll have to restrain them again."

"If it makes them better in the long run, do it."

Callie watched Marie sink into the ground, and died inside slightly when she heard the girl's scream get cut off suddenly. A few minutes later, Marie reappeared.

"I did my best, I removed their memories of the past few minutes. They're going to be quite confused."

She collected her mask from Callie. True to her word, when the pair woke up, the girl immediately screamed, running her hands over her wrists, eyes and mouth before stopping, frowning and helping the now-sober Zantzi to his feet.

"Good to see we've not completely ruined their evening."


	17. Chapter 17

**Really wasn't feeling it with this chapter. Oh well.**

Zantzi looked at Isla. Isla looked back. The pair looked around the alley, thoroughly confused.

"Huh?" Was all that Isla could manage. Zantzi was similarly lost for words.

"Did something just happen?"

"I don't know, I could've sworn... Hey, how come you're not drunk anymore?"

"I was drunk? Huh. How easily does alcohol burn?"

"Very."

"I guess I burned it off for energy then... But why?"

"I'm jealous. You won't wake up with a killer headache tomorrow. Still, it's so weird, like I've forgotten something really important..." She looked at Zantzi. "Well, if you're no longer drunk, let's go and find a place to watch the fireworks. I saw a poster for them when we were walking to that restaurant."

* * *

It wasn't long until the two of them were stood on a beach, a short walk away from the shore. There were very few people there, so Isla had secured a place on the rocks to watch the show. When Zantzi settled after climbing up, she leant on his shoulder. He tilted his head and smirked.

"You're very light."

"No bones, remember."

"Makes sense."

They sat in silence, the sound of the surf hissing in the night air. Out on the water, there was a faint spark, followed by a high-pitched whistle as the first rocket took off, flying into the night before detonating in an enormous spread of colourful sparks, accompanied by an explosion. Isla hummed contentedly, watching as more rockets flew. She felt that Zantzi had tensed up.

"Hey, are you alright?"

Zantzi turned his head, perhaps too quickly, to look at her. She saw that his eyes were wide.

"Sorry, it's just-" he stopped talking when another rocket exploded. "-involuntary. Being out of the pod makes this very uncomfortable."

"I get it, you've been in many explosions when you've fought."

"Pretty much."

Isla looked around, standing up and repositioning herself behind Zantzi, further up the verge. She sat with her knees together, and pulled Zantzi backwards.

"Try laying back, I have an idea."

Staring at Isla for a moment, the Tenno lowered his head, resting it on her thighs. She moved her hands inside his hood and spoke.

"You just keep watching. And trust me."

Zantzi turned his attention to the fireworks and, as he did so, he felt Isla's hands clamp themselves around his ears- it didn't completely remove the noise, and he could still feel some of the particularly large explosions, but he found himself relaxing. Isla smiled, and was currently feeling something that she had not expected- where her hands were in direct skin contact, there was an odd sensation, not unlike a tingling burn. She concluded that it was due to the energy stored inside Zantzi. She turned her attention back to the fireworks.

 _If this is going to be one of his last nights here, I'm going to make sure he enjoys it._

* * *

"Aww, that's so sweet."

"What is it, Ozara?"

"It sounds like Zantzi's Octoling friend is going to make certain he enjoys his final days here."

"Cute." Ruben remarked.

Ozara turned to face him. The two of them were stood in Zantzi's Orbiter, keeping guard of the foundry while it built the remaining rocket boosters.

"Hey, you know what'd be funny?"

"Do tell."

"I could get inside both their heads and make them... Shall we say...? A little less inhibited?"

Ruben looked at her, tilting his head.

"Think about it."

Ruben sniggered.

"Now stop thinking about it, you perv."

"As amusing as it would be, it would not be a very good idea. Anything could happen."

"Yeah, I guess."

"Unless..."

"This idea is going to be just as bad, isn't it?"

"Worse." Ruben said, unmistakable mirth in his voice. "What do all scientists do?"

"I don't know, Ruben. What _do_ all scientists do?"

"Observe."

"Oh, gross!"

"I'm joking. I could never pry on a friend's private life. Still, what do you think would happen, if they, you know..."

"I'm hitting the emergency exit on this conversation."

"Fair enough."

The sound of the Foundry working away was the only noise for several minutes. A loud alert rang out as the fourth booster was completed and the machinery began construction on the fifth.

"Five days." Ruben said. "Maybe a bit longer to attach everything, but in five days, we'll be back to the fight."

"You're not thinking of staying, are you?" Ozara tilted her head. "Wow, you are."

"I mean, war is pretty much all I've ever known, all that we as Tenno know. All these Tenno, and not one of them knows for sure what we did before all this. I mean, we're children, for crying out loud. Given some of us have older bodies, such as myself and Tohn, and you're getting there, but Zantzi and Mu are basically teenagers. I'm sure the people of this world would allow us to stay in some major settlement like the so-called Inkopolis."

"You make it sound like the boosters and Void Blade are going to fail."

"I'm a scientist, as infrequently as it happens, I'm used to things blowing up in my face."

"And suddenly your eccentricity makes sense."

They lapsed into silence again, the occasional chirp drifting in from outside. Ruben heard footsteps approaching, and Ozara turned to the door as it opened, Mu walking in. She waved. Ozara and Ruben waved back before leaving, heading to their respective Landing Craft.

* * *

Upon waking up the following morning, Zantzi frowned. While the warmth he currently felt was nothing out of the ordinary, the weight he felt was. Further evaluation made him question the warmth as well- it was coming from every direction around his head. He opened his eyes. He was in his room in the mountain, which was reassuring, but what he saw when he inspected the source of the heat caught him off-guard. Isla was practically wrapped around his head, one of her legs dangerously close to his neck. He fought to contain the sudden rush of energy, finding it very easy to do so due to still being in his Transference suit. His breath caught in his throat nonetheless, and Isla woke up as a result of the ensuing coughing fit. When she realised where she was, she giggled. Instead of moving, she tightened her grip.

"Isla, please..."

"Nnnnope! Your head is too warm for me to leave."

Zantzi rolled his eyes and tried to sit up. Isla simply shifted her weight to drag him down again. He groaned as she giggled again. He lay still for a few seconds, waiting for Isla to settle before digging his fingers straight into her unprotected sides. The effect was immediate. She yelped, jerking away from his touch while trying to keep her composure. Zantzi quickly stood up and made his way to the bathroom against the waves of dizziness.

"Not fair!" Isla shouted.

She huffed, settling back onto the bed and waiting for the Tenno to emerge. She sat up when he did so, stretching and yawning.

"So what are you doing today?"

"Back to my Orbiter. I can't just leave someone else to guard my foundry."

"Fine. But I'm coming with you."

"I thought you hated it when I sat around and didn't do anything."

"Did I say we were going to do nothing?"

"No, but-"

"Shh. You'll see."

Isla went to leave the room.

"Where are you going?"

"Getting a wash. Your room uses water, remember?"

"Point taken."

As Isla left, Zantzi turned to the three kneeling Warframes, deciding to take the Frost instead of the Loki. The armour jerked to life as he touched it, his influence animating it and directing it to pick him up. He locked the door as he left, making his way outside and sitting down. Isla emerged twenty minutes later, climbing onto the shoulders of the Frost as it made a seat with its arms for Zantzi. The Warframe carried the pair to Zantzi's Orbiter, and Mu left the vehicle as they arrived, the slight form of her Nezha vanishing into the trees. The pair headed inside, Zantzi immediately checking the foundry, nodding when he saw that the fifth booster was half-built. Isla looked at the incubator, frowning at the distinctive lack of Kubrow.

"Where is she?"

"Where is who?"

"Your... Kubrow? Did I say that right?"

"Yes. And they're probably all in stasis right now."

Zantzi opened the display and was met with four markers. He pointed to the various elements on the screen.

"So what we have here is the name of the Kubrow, and down there is the type of Kubrow it is. There's four different types. Maxie is a Sahasa, and Sahasa Kubrow are great for digging up supplies. Kora is a Chesa, and Chesa are very good at fetching items, including enemy weapons. I have two more- Kinna, who is a Sunika, which are bred to chase down and ground enemies, and Arkus, a Raksa, which can terrify enemies and protect me in battle. The only breed I'm missing is a Huras, which are bred for stealth."

"They sound so dependable."

"That's because they are. Since they're ground-bound, they're more vulnerable in battle, so that's why I've put a link between my Kubrows and my melee weapons. Any blood drawn in close combat heals my Kubrow. It allows them to take much more punishment."

"If they're so useful, why don't you have them out all the time?"

Zantzi sighed.

"Because they're genetically unstable. Come here."

Zantzi led Isla out of the Orbiter and into the Liset, taking her to the codex and bringing up pictures of the different types of Kubrow.

"These are all domesticated, grown from an egg inside the incubator in the Orbiter. However, natural Kubrow do not look like that. They look like this."

He pulled up a picture of a Feral Kubrow, and Isla visibly recoiled.

"What happened?"

"Kubrow were originally pets for the Orokin Empire. When they fell, the Kubrow died with them, except for those on Earth. They regressed though, becoming nothing more than mindless animals. However, research allowed us to influence the DNA of an unhatched Kubrow, making more useful to us and making look better too. However, this process results in genetic decay, and as of yet there is no way to stop it. We can only temporarily restore a Kubrow's DNA using stabilisers, but even so they still decay at the same rate, starting at positive one hundred percent and decaying at a rate of ten percent a day down to negative one hundred, at which point the Kubrow would die. However, this incubator is a bit more powerful, and does a few things, like reducing how long it takes for my Kubrow to recover from stasis, and also halving the rate of decay."

"Sounds useful."

"It's practically necessary."

"Pretty much. Now for the Mirage."

Zantzi walked to the Orbiter, as he had left the Frost inside. He stepped up to the inventory station, and pulled the Mirage out of storage, carefully setting it into a kneeling position.

"Alright: I need to run to my Transference pod to use the Mirage. Can you wait here and... Guard it?"

"If you bring out a Kubrow, sure."

"There's no point. They'll be inactive for half an hour anyway."

"So you're just going to leave me here by myself?"

"I'll only be like five minutes."

With that, he climbed onto his Frost's shoulders and headed outside. Isla stood still for a few moments, shaking her head. She turned around, looking at the inventory station. After a brief moment of consideration, she reached forward and touched it, the holographic display appearing around her. She tapped the panel labelled "Primary", her eyes widening when she saw how many guns Zantzi had. She scrolled through the list, selecting the Latron Wraith at random and yelping when the comparatively huge rifle appeared in her hands, the sudden weight causing her to drop it. She struggled to lift it, almost dragging it to the door before setting it down more carefully. She sat down too, positioning herself behind the rifle and attempted to shoulder it, barely able to reach the trigger. She aimed at the ground and squeezed, a suppressed sound accompanying a small explosion of dirt. The recoil knocked Isla onto her back. Laughing, she took the Latron back to the inventory station and scrolled again, this time picking out the Hek. This one was even bigger than the last, the combined weight of the four barrels almost too much for Isla to lift. She did the same as before, taking it to the door and aiming at the dirt. The noise when she pulled the trigger was much louder, and she gasped as the recoil launched her backwards. As she lay there, laughing to herself, her world grew pitch black for less than a second, and a voice came from behind her.

"You do know what they're planning, right?"

Isla sat bolt upright, looking for the source of the voice. Right before her eyes, a woman appeared, a woman wearing a mask, rising out of the floor as if it were some pool of ink as opposed to solid metal. Green-white tentacles reached down to the small of her back, resting on top of a black cloak.

"Who are you?"

"That isn't important." The woman said. "But answer my question. Do you know what they're planning?"

"They're planning to leave this world." Isla pushed herself backwards, away from the woman, only for her back to press against some sort of barrier. She stared at the woman, now fearing for her life.

"Don't worry, I'm not going to hurt you more than I already have. I need your help."

 _What does she mean by that?_

"To do what? You c-clearly are not an Inkling."

"No, I suppose not. But if it's my word against yours, Zantzi will listen to you. I need you to convince him and the other Tenno not to leave. If they do make a portal to leave through, something will come through from the other side and destroy this world."

"And you expect me to take that at face value from a woman in a mask?"

"It's the easiest way to do it, yes."

"And if he doesn't listen, dismisses the idea as stupid and does it anyway?"

"Then I'll take matters into my own hands. But of prefer to do this peacefully."

The barrier shook as if it had been struck. A web of cracks spread out from one point. The woman looked at it.

"There's no more time." She said, beginning to sink into the ground. "Try to convince him. I really don't want to fight."

She disappeared, and the barrier broke, revealing the active Mirage holding an enormous frozen hammer. It dropped the hammer and ran forward, kneeling down in front of Isla.

"Are you alright?" Zantzi asked, his voice being channelled through the Warframe. "What was that?"

"I'm fine. And I don't know. What did it look like from outside?"

"Like a black, crystal sphere."

"There was a woman in a mask."

"What did she do? Did she tell you anything?"

"She told me to tell you that your plan to escape will destroy the planet."

If Warframes had the capacity to frown, Isla was sure that that would be the expression that would be on the Mirage's trilobite like helmet.

"...sure. And your proof?"

"That woman appeared out of the ground, put up a barrier like it was nothing, and told me to take it at face value. She knew your name though."

"The only other people who aren't Tenno of Octolings who know my name are an old man, an Inkling with strange powers and a girl with a mask who threatened to torture me and succeeded in putting a knife through both of my hands. This woman is new. But I can't just put all of our work to waste, and the others won't change their minds. Nevertheless, there's still about five days. I'm sure-"

He stopped when someone entered the Orbiter- it was Tohn.

"We all want out, so we all chipped in. Here's some platinum to rush the build."

Before Zantzi could protest, Tohn placed the platinum on the foundry- the glowing coins sank into the machine, and the arm immediately moved back to its resting position. The sound of Landing Craft engines filled the air, Ozara, Ruben and Mu dropping in and moving the boosters in pairs, each Landing Craft picking up two boosters, leaving one for Zantzi's Orbiter. Ruben's ship took the Void Blade as it appeared, the glittering instrument emitting a constant low hum. Isla watched on, utterly dejected. Zantzi saw her expression and sat down next to her.

"We won't be leaving just yet. They still need to set up the appropriate systems for those boosters."

"I... Just thought we'd have longer."

Zantzi sighed. He opened his communications with Ruben.

"How long will it take you to get everything ready?"

"Thirty six hours, no more."

Isla stood up.

"I'm going to go back to the mountain. I'm going to organise a leaver's party for you, and you better make sure you're there." She said, pointing at Zantzi.

"Don't worry, I'll be there. I promise."

Seemingly satisfied, Isla left the Orbiter. Zantzi groaned. Ozara walked in and stood next to him, watching the Octoling go.

"You are totally into her." She said.

"What?!" He spluttered. "I-It's just-"

"Love. Mind reader, remember. Look, I'll get to the point. Leaving was always going to be harder for you because you've been here considerably longer than us and you were basically thrown straight into contact with the indigenous. But believe me when I say that the longer you draw it out, the more painful it gets. The sooner we leave, the better. By all means, go to the party. Leave her with good memories. Just don't do anything you'll regret."

She patted him on the back before leaving. Zantzi sighed and left the Orbiter, making his way back towards the mountain.


	18. Chapter 18

The hall was packed- Octolings filled almost all of the available space, and the rest was filled up with tables of food and speakers. At the back of the hall was an elevated platform practically covered in turntables and mixing boards. An Octoling adorned with neon lines, flashing lights and glow sticks stood behind the tables, stretching her fingers one after the other before making a huge show of pressing a single button to start the music. The crowd was jumping in sync with the rhythm almost immediately, cheering and whooping. Light fixtures attached to the ceiling began their show, the hall becoming a strobing pit of bodies and light.

"Alrighty, you partyholics! You all ready?"

The Octoling held a hand to her ear, and the crowd roared.

"Thats right! Of course you are!" She stepped up the music. "Now you all know Zantzi, the boy with his badass armour?" The crowd cheered. Some wolf whistles bounced off the walls. "Yeah! But this guy, who survived falling out of the sky like it was a dope slap, is leaving soon: forever."

The crowd booed, and the DJ stepped down the music, the previously full track replaced with a simple bass line.

"However..." A slow build in the music began. "However! White Water always brings good news! And for one. Night. Only..." White Water laughed under her breath. "He's here with us!"

The music peaked, and that was Zantzi's cue. He sent illusions of himself dropping to the floor, a space forming in the middle of the crowd. He jumped next, his illusions bursting into multicoloured light as he landed, and he struck a pose when the music reached the top of its peak. The music became very fast, heavy drums echoing off the walls. Zantzi started his routine, performing a highly improvised and unorthodox Narta, augmenting it with the lights and lasers of Mirage's latent abilities. The crowd loved it, and despite himself, Zantzi found himself smiling inside his pod. He directed the Mirage to rotate around, making sure he faced everyone who had formed a wide circle around him. To his expectation, Isla was stood at the edge of the circle, and she was genuinely smiling even though it was the final hours of his visit to the world. That made him smile too.

His song ended, and he finished his Narta by summoning his illusions and having them strike a different pose each before exploding into showers of light. The crowd erupted into cheers and applause, and Zantzi placed bother hands to his chest and bowed.

"What a way to kick off the night! There're plenty more tunes where that came from. I don't care about the tons of rock above us; let's raise the freakin' roof!"

* * *

Mira wrapped her arms around Marie as she shuddered in her sleep, the eyeless woman's mouth subconsciously pronouncing soundless words. She gasped and awoke, clutching her head. She groaned.

"What happened?" Mira asked, adjusting her embrace so that she could talk face-to-face.

"Everything ends. Everything ends tomorrow if I do nothing." She checked the time, visibly sagging. "Today, actually. It's one in the morning, and the world ends today." She flopped back onto the pillow, groaning again.

"How... How do the souls know this?" Mira asked.

"They tell me they were once something called humans, from like, many thousands of years ago. They call themselves shamans, and they see the future. Or so they tell me."

"And these ones specifically told you the Tenno cause the end of the world tomor- today?"

"Yes. I need to stop them."

"That may be, but you're going to be tired this way. Sleep."

"Can't. Far too awake now."

"Well then." Mira started, and Marie became aware of one of Mira's hands sliding down her body. "We need to do something about that, then. Wouldn't you agree?"

* * *

Despite the insanely late night before- the party had lasted until sunrise- Zantzi woke early and washed himself, as was his routine. He headed down to his Transference pod and settled into it, placing himself in his Valkyr. He would like to finish his business as soon as possible. He made his way back up to his room, picking up the nearest Warframe, his Mirage. He raised an arm, a screen appearing in mid-air.

"Ordis?"

"Yes, Operator?"

"Would you bring the Liset to the mountain, please?"

"Certainly. Shall I keep to subsonic speeds?"

"Yes."

"I will be there in a few minutes then. Standby."

Zantzi began walking to the exit, carrying the Mirage over his shoulder. As he stepped out into the morning sun, the Liset descended, glittering in the faint light. It turned itself, the ramp lowering as it touched down, and Zantzi lay the Mirage inside before heading into the mountain again. Several minutes later, he returned with the Frost, setting it down inside the Liset before returning to pick up the Loki. When he stepped into the corridor, he saw that his door was ajar. He tilted his head, confused.

 _Could've swore I closed the door..._

He tensed up, stepping to the doorway and pushed the door, the sight inside catching him off-guard- the room was full of lit candles, the flickering flames casting an orange glow across the kneeling Loki. There were at least a hundred of them, the molten wax dripping down onto papers with unfamiliar characters on, but three stood out most of all- one candle sat within the embrace of a sculpted Vulture, the second one lain across a shield. The third, however, was featureless, but stood on a note written in a language he could understand. He reached out to pick it up, only to stop, straighten up and speak to Ordis.

"Ordis, capture a high-resolution still of the feed I'm sending you. I do not want to forget this."

"Certainly, Operator."

Zantzi knelt down, reaching across the other candles to pick up the readable note, mentally preparing himself as he did so. He began reading.

 _"To Zantzi,_

 _You may not be able to read most of the notes in this room, since you can't read our alphabet. But have you noticed they're all the same character?"_

Zantzi looked again at the papers in the room and confirmed that the papers did in fact have the same character on them. He continued reading.

 _"All the people in this mountain, all of them would be dead if not for you, trapped in their homes deep underground. Down there, there was little hope. When Vulture and Aegis opened those doors, many just cried. They cried because they didn't know what to say or do, because suddenly, they were going to live, not die in the dark. Every single paper in this room says "Thank you" and everyone from the super deep colony has written one. We couldn't let you go without you knowing just how much you mean to us. And how much you mean to me. Never forget us, because we will not forget you._

 _Isla Kataka"_

Zantzi read and reread the note again, making sure he remembered it. He asked Ordis to take another still before he collected every single sheet, taking care not to inadvertently set any on fire. He carried them out to the Liset, placing them on the Codex's table before returning to the mountain to pick up his Loki, stepping over the candles to do so. Once the Loki was inside the Liset, it took off, leaving Zantzi at the mountain as he made his way down to his Transference pod. He sighed.

"Ordis, are you ready to-"

"Zantzi."

The Tenno stopped, he head dropping slightly.

"One moment, Ordis."

He turned around to face his visitor; Isla was stood behind him.

"I wanted to see you. The real you, one last time. Before you leave." She was having a hard time keeping her voice steady.

Nodding, Zantzi obliged. The Valkyr knelt as the pod opened, Zantzi pulling himself out and standing up straight. Isla ran forward and embraced him almost immediately.

"You're really going, aren't you?"

"Isla, I have to. It's not just me we have to think about here."

"I know, it's just so hard..."

"I know, I know." Zantzi broke off, looking Isla in the eyes. He could see clear tear streaks on her cheeks. "I found your note. And everyone else's. I don't know what to say."

"A thank-you would be nice." Isla snarked.

"Alright. Thank you."

The pair stood in silence.

"So. This is goodbye then." Isla said

"It appears so. In a few minutes, Ordis will teleport the pod and my Warframe back to the Orbiter. You can't be in this room when that happens."

"Why not?"

"Void Energy is very dangerous. I mean, look what it did to me, and I was apparently inside the Zariman when it happened. If you were exposed to a high concentration of it while unprotected, you'd be ripped apart."

"Oh. That's not good."

"No, it isn't. I wouldn't be surprised if you got some weird weather after we leave- any Void Energy coming through the portal could affect the atmosphere. You might get gold lightning."

"That would be pretty."

Silence again. Zantzi sighed and Isla sobbed once before composing herself.

"It's going to be very quiet around here without you."

"Honestly? I don't think it will be."

"Let me rephrase that. It'll be a lot quieter around here without Aegis yelling at you."

The pair laughed.

"That woman could teach the Steel Meridian a thing or two about discipline."

"Probably."

Silence again. Zantzi went to say something, stopped, reconsidered, stuttered again before finally speaking.

"I really appreciate you spending your time with me. Truly. I won't ever forget you, any of you."

"L-likewise."

The pod hummed quietly until both the pitch and volume began to grow. Zantzi looked at it.

"Void Energy is starting to build. You need to leave." When Isla did not move, he stepped forward. "Isla, you have got-"

The Octoling stepped forward, pressing her lips to his. The sensation was quite unlike what she was expecting- she could feel a sort of electricity discharging into her. It wasn't painful, just odd. Zantzi stiffened, unable to react. When Isla backed away, he blinked rapidly.

"You... Uh, I... I should... Probably..."

He quickly retreated to his pod, the first tendrils of energy writhing towards him, attempting to grasp him. He closed his pod before they got close enough, standing as his Loki. He watched as Isla stepped outside the room; he could see her tears from where he was stood. As the Void wrapped itself around him and the pod, he raised an arm, waving to Isla as he was pulled through space, the mountain disappearing from view, being replaced by the blank metal of the Somatic Link. Zantzi fell to his knees, hand on his chest.

 _Why... Why does it hurt so much...?_

"Operator? Are you alright? Your shields have not been broken have they?"

"...no, no they haven't Ordis. Begin take-off preparations."

"All in good time, Operator. We must make one more jump to the Dojo so that we can use the portal. The Crimson Hammer are ready to receive us."

"Do it."

Outside, grass charred and wilted as Void Energy filled the air, the Liset and Orbiter vanishing and reappearing beside the Dojo. Almost immediately, Ruben's ship swooped in above, using its tractor beams to pull Zantzi's Orbiter upright before docking with the Dojo. An audio link was established.

"Alright, preparations are in order. Zantzi, you ready?" Ozara asked.

"...yes."

"Excellent. Ruben, are the boosters ready?"

"All responsive. Remote commands for Zantzi's booster is also responsive."

"Good. Mu, has the surrounding area been evacuated? Good. Tohn, is the Blade ready?"

"Yes. It's charged."

"Good. All Landing Craft are docked and ready to assist. Begin launch procedure. One minute!"

All displays in Zantzi's craft switched to a countdown, the sixty seconds quickly beginning to tick away. There were faint shudders as the booster attached to Zantzi's Orbiter was adjusted by Ruben. On thirty, Tohn's voice came through the speakers.

"Stage one of Blade online... Now."

Atop the Dojo, space around the Void Blade began to bend, teal energy accruing around it. That was when Zantzi saw it.

"There's someone up there."

"Say again, Zantzi?"

"Someone's on top of the Void Blade."

Zantzi watch as its arm became a blade and it slashed at the delicate instrument.

"Ordis, take the body you built and get up there. See if you can stop them."

"Of course."

Zantzi heard the hiss of the deployment tube and soon saw Ordis walking up the side of the Dojo, wielding two small Ether Daggers. He soon reached the top, vanishing from sight.

"Suspend the launch for a few minutes, just in case something happens up there."

When Ordis cleared the top of the Dojo, the display showing his cubes flickered as he recognised the black-armoured Inkling stood atop the Void Blade, several large gashes in the golden material around him.

"Fish freak."

"I'm sorry, but this is the only way." The Inkling said, black teeth bared as he raised his arm again, crystalline edges swinging towards the Void Blade again. Ordis dashed forward, his daggers blocking Raaz's attack. Ordis's frame creaked under the weight of the attack, and he jumped backwards, the white polymers tarnishing in the Void Energy in the air. Raaz was surprisingly unaffected, despite being a living organism.

"I'm not just going to stand by and watch this world get destroyed by your mistake."

"And I will not let a- FILTHY FREAK- one of the indigenous destroy our property."

Ordis jumped forward, swinging the daggers at Raaz, changing one dagger's course to throw the afflicted Inkling off. He reacted quickly, parrying the closest swing and dodging the second, the tip leaving a faint line in his chest- red soon began to drip out. He looked at the wound, confused. The Ether Dagger had pierced straight through his crystal armour. He growled, fashioning his blade into a spear instead to give himself extra reach. Ordis inverted his grip on the left dagger, his hand rotating freely about the joint, before he charged again, leaping up into the air to increase the force of his strike. Raaz blocked with ease, reacting quickly as Ordis used his momentum to slide around him, swinging for his back. Raaz dodged at the last possible moment, the dagger succeeding in cutting into his armour, the furrow it left rapidly closing.

"Operator." He said. "I require assistance."

Zantzi relayed the message to Ozara. From inside the Dojo's Observatory, Ozara began her own attack, psychic tendrils searching for Raaz. He felt the attack coming and sent out a signal of his own. At first, nothing happened, and Raaz felt himself lose control of his body as Ozara's mind overtook his. Then his control returned to him as Ozara yelped in pain.

Inside the Observatory, Ozara rapidly retracted her powers as an enormous mass of psychic energy appeared in the room with her, momentarily overwhelming her until the mental pressure caused by its sudden appearance abated. Using her eyes again, Ozara watched as a black mass rose from the floor, taking the shape of a woman wearing a mask and black, crystalline armour. Two more masks, both heavily corroded, were attached to the woman's hips.

"We can't let you do this." She said, speaking with such a heavy tone that Ozara thought she may burst into tears at any moment. "We can't let you destroy this world."

"We're not going to destroy it. We going to leave it."

The woman frowned.

"That's the problem."

Ozara dodged as a swarm of shards was propelled at her with lethal momentum, the crystals shattering against the walls of the dojo and leaving it pockmarked. The Tenno had no time to think about it as the woman attacked fiercely and unrelentingly, giving Ozara no time to concentrate enough to form a psychic attack. She drew her sword, the Silva igniting as she pulled it from its shield, which also ignited and expanded, wreathed in white flame. She held it up in front of her, sheltering herself against the gale that was threatening to destroy her shields. She began to press forwards, hearing whispers from the woman's- no, Marie's- psyche as she drew closer. She frowned when she realised that only one of the countless voices she heard belonged to Marie. She reached out to one, trying to gain control over it but what viciously beaten back by the others, their words overpowering and evicting her.

 _Physical attacks it is, then._

Ozara was now close enough- she swung, her fiery sword connecting with Marie's hand. When she attempted to pull the sword back, Marie hurled her across the room, back into the gale of shadows.

"I don't want to hurt you." She shouted over the howling wind. "But I will do if it means stopping you."

Ozara didn't dignify her with a reply- she instead began pushing forwards again, almost losing her footing when the gale suddenly stopped. Ozara glanced at the wall, and saw that it was heavily pitted and tarnished. She growled.

"What the hell are you?" She demanded. Marie frowned.

"The monster that loves someone far too much for their own good. True story." She raised an arm, a black mist forming in her open hand. "But not one I'm about to tell you if you insist on killing this world."

Marie narrowly avoided the lightning that burst through the door, leaping upward as it struck the ground in front of her. From the hallway stepped Ruben, an ornate staff with golden heads spinning in his grip. A ring of lightning formed around him and he charged at breakneck speeds, striking with the Bo Prime far faster than was humanly possible.

"Ozara." He said. "You are far more valuable to us as a psychic. Do what you do best."

Without a word, Ozara fled the observatory, beginning her attack on Raaz again. Marie pushed Ruben back with a hail of crystal before sending a black mass after Ozara to act as a jammer. She received an electric shock for her trouble.

"Let's keep this between us two, alright?"

He dropped to one knee and began shooting, Marie barely having enough time to throw up a barrier to protect herself against bullets that exploded on impact. Ruben span the pistol after each shot, clearly enjoying himself. As shield appeared in front of him as Marie sent volleys of crystal in his direction, the attack breaking against the electrical barrier, breaking into mist and returning to Marie.

"Don't make me hurt you; that's the last thing I want."

"Good for you." Ruben said. "A shame I do not share that sentiment."

He opened fire with his Marelok again, forcing Marie to dodge. The final round in the clip connected with her chest, and she gasped, collapsing onto her knees before flopping forward, black tar spreading from her body. Ruben reloaded, keeping his weapon pointed at Marie's body at all times. He kicked her onto her back, shaking his head in disappointment when he saw the black leaking from the corner of her mouth. He turned away, about to run when a hand pulled his legs from beneath him, and an exceptionally heavy foot kicked the gun out of his hands.

"Pretty good acting, don't you think?" Marie said, a wisp of black evaporating from her. "I hate having to shift the damage onto another soul, but I've talked to each and every one of them- they all agree their death is better than this world's. You-" she stopped as Raaz fell past the window, shrieking and clawing at his head as he went. "No!"

Ruben turned as Marie ran to the window, passing through it like it was nothing and falling after Raaz. He did not shoot for fear of breaking the glass, only watching as she extended a tendril towards the falling boy and dragging him towards herself, taking hold of him before extending more tendrils towards the ground, slowing their fall to a safe speed. Ruben was on the microphone immediately.

"Launch."

"Launching."

"Void Blade charging, twenty seconds."

"Launching in ten."

Atop the Dojo, Ordis began his run back to Zantzi's ship.

"Nine, eight, seven..."

The Void Blade whined as it charged, the air around it becoming an ethereal shade of teal.

"Six, five, four..."

On the ground, Marie pulled Raaz into the ground, leaving the blast zone before it became scorched earth.

"Three, two, one."

 **And now, it starts to get interesting.**


	19. Chapter 19

**The War Within is gearing up to be quite interesting by the looks of it. Clearly, Teshin knows something that the rest of the Tenno don't, but we have no idea what that may be.**

"Zero."

The peace was shattered as six mighty rockets all ignited in unison, the roaring flames driving great clouds of mist into the sky. At the same time, the Landing Craft attached to the Dojo started their engines, multicoloured pinpricks adding their own power to the rockets. Alongside the Dojo was Zantzi's Orbiter, ascending with the much larger structure. Marie watched with Raaz from a distance.

"No!" She screamed. She quickly composed herself, whirling on Raaz. "Get everyone in the city to go to Shast's mansion. That's the only place I can keep them all safe. I'm going to the mountain. They don't know it but they need my help."

Raaz nodded, vanishing into the ground. Marie did the same, appearing in front of the mountain, and was immediately stopped by Vulture and Aegis.

"And where do you think you're going?" Aegis asked, her fingers balled into fists.

"Are you in charge here?" Marie asked, forming an attack.

"Yeah. I am. And you're not welcome."

"I don't care. All of you need to clear out. Get to Inkopolis. There's a mansion there run by a man named Shast. I can protect you there."

"Oh yeah? Protect us from what?"

"Boosters holding steady." Ruben stated, keeping a close eye on the data he was receiving. "Approaching the edge of the atmosphere. Tohn, is that Void Blade ready?"

"Yes."

"Good, use it."

Atop the Dojo, space bent as a beam of gold, several kilometres long, erupted from the Void Blade, rupturing space and piercing the heavens. Around the tip, a rip grew, energy bubbling out of it and causing to rip to grow, the shockwaves shaking the earth beneath, the thunder rattling windows as far away as Inkopolis. The Dojo ascended further, slowly closing the gap between itself and the rift.

"Come on..." Ruben uttered. "Just a little more..."

His attention was drawn to the console as it flickered, a message from the Lotus coming in.

"Tenno? Can you hear me?"

"I read you, there's a lot of static, but I can hear you."

"Then the Void Blade was a success?"

"Correct."

The Lotus' image became sharper, the static clearing as the Dojo drew ever closer to the rift.

"Excellent work, Tenno." She said. It was at that point, Ruben knew something was wrong. The voice was too smug, too goading. "Sustaining sequence."

The lights in the Dojo flickered as all available power was directed to the Void Blade, the Lotus's image burning up as the Sentient dropped his disguise.

"Ordis!" Ruben barked into the radio. "Destroy the blade! We were tricked! It was Hunhow!"

"Your little plastic friend cannot possibly wade into the field now. It will tear him to shreds. How does it feel? Knowing your efforts have failed?"

Ordis was running up the side of the Dojo, making slow progress against the howling wind. In his hands was an Opticor. Rooting himself to the Dojo, he aimed and fired, glancing a part of the Void Blade.

"All that you've built will be torn down to make way for my empire, back before the Orokin even existed. This world must perish first."

Beyond the portal, a ship pulled into view; small and bloated, it was covered in pallid grey flesh. Another followed next to it, and another- the space on the other side was filled with Infested ships, the ranks closing around the portal. Ordis fired again, the energy fired by the weapon swamped and dissipated by the energy that bathed the Void Blade.

"Ozara, it isn't working. We are - SCREWED- in a serious predicament."

Every shot Ordis fired only served to amuse Hunhow more, who smiled and chuckled lowly.

"There is no stopping this storm. You know just how fast the Infestation can spread. And an Infested planet is much easier to deal with than five Tenno."

The first hive ship emerged through the portal, and was immediately destroyed by the beam still erupting from the Void Blade. The device suddenly stopped, and the next ship that emerged began a nosedive for the planet below.

"Ruben, disengage the thrusters and get to your landing craft! Use any means you have to stop it from reaching the ground!"

The Dojo lurched as all propulsion ceased, and Ozara now had to contend with microgravity on her way back to her ship as the Dojo plummeted. She scrambled into her Scimitar, the craft peeling away from the once-again-crashing structure, its weapon systems targeting the Infested ship. She opened fire, energy weapons tearing the ship apart, reducing it to fragments that were incinerated by the atmosphere before they hit the ground. With that done, the ship rotated, turning its weapons on the rift, firing indiscriminately at everything on the other side of the ruptured space. Every ship beyond accelerated through the resulting fireballs, unnatural growths snapping noiselessly. Tiny jets of flame filled the air as minuscule barbs of bone burned through the atmosphere, pockmarking the hulls of the spacecraft and Dojo.

From inside his ship, Zantzi could only watch as Ozara's guns lit the rift up. One gun stopped, a battery being ejected from the hull and dropping away as the second one kept firing. When the first gun began firing again, the second one reloaded, maintaining a constant hail of energy on the Infestation beyond the portal.

"Ordis, will you be able to take control of one of the ships?"

"Negative, operator. Those ships literally have a mind of their own."

"Then deploy Archwing. Tell the others to do the same. We need all the guns we have pointing towards that portal."

Marie watched as portal opened and shook her head. There was no more time to lose.

"Listen." She said, turning to Aegis who was clenching her fists. "This world is about to die and I can only protect you if you let me."

"You are delusional." Vulture said.

"If you're not going to leave, then I'm gonna have to get rough, and you're not going to like that."

When a second set of guns opened fire on the hole, Marie winced.

"I don't want to have to fight you, but all the people above ground or in this mountain will die when one of those ships-" an explosion emphasised her point- "touches the ground. So please, let me help you!"

She raised her arms, and immediately Vulture flexed his fingers, two blades appearing from each of his gauntlets. Marie faltered.

"Leave." Vulture said, the barbed blades glinting in the light. "Now."

Another ship exploded, the shrapnel drawing dangerously close to the ground before evaporating.

"Then you leave me no choice." Marie sighed. "I'll have to-"

She moved mid-sentence, catching Aegis and Vulture off guard and clouding their vision with dark mist. The Octolings barely dodged the grasping arms that erupted from the ground around them, leaping out of the way and batting them back- Vulture's blades glinted as he swung, severing an arm that was fast approaching Aegis' back and watching it wriggle back to Marie. She grimaced. She had hoped her sneak attack would have been enough. She was forced into a defensive stance as Vulture attacked, a whirlwind of bladed kicks and swipes that flowed around her, her reflexes barely fast enough to block all of the attacks. She was unable to block Aegis' sudden attack, and was knocked back, ending up flat on her back. Vulture was upon her immediately, the point of his blades cold against her neck. In the sky, she watched as the glow from the rift intensified.

"Destroy it! Destroy the blade!"

Ozara's voice appeared in both sound and thought, and Zantzi obliged- his Grattler swung into place, each barrel racheting once before he opened fire, explosive shells exploding around the golden instrument. It rumbled, glowing cracks spreading across the surface before it erupted into energetic lightning. Zantzi took a hit from the discharge, the corruption circling around his weapon and supercharging it, he turned to the rift, adding his fire to Ozara's. He was swiftly joined by Ruben, who began plugging away with his Velocitus, and Tohn and Mu shortly after, both armed with the Fluctus. The edges of the rift had begun to converge, the blinding gold replaced with the darkness of space.

"It's closing!" Ruben shouted. "Keep firing! Do not allow a single ship through!"

The space beyond the rift was a wasteland of Infested matter, but more ships were approaching, and were swiftly ripped apart by the Tenno's sustained fire. A particularly large projectile flew towards the rift, launched by Mu, and it detonated on the other side, a mighty shockwave shaking the air. And still the rift closed, the hole now much smaller. The dojo hit the ground, remaining upright despite the force of impact. The top was heavily corroded due to the Void's energy. Zantzi grinned.

"I hope you don't think you have won. Natah cannot help you here, nothing can. Behold the horrors from beyond the system."

Enormous tendrils erupted from the portal, forcing it to widen again as the matter that made them up was converted into fuel for the reaction. A much larger life form pulled itself through, roaring with hunger as it saw the planet below. It began to fall, shrugging off all gunfire and heading straight for the ground.

"Kill it! Kill it!"

Zantzi Blinked into range, attempting to halt the leviathan's advance with his singularities. The monstrosity didn't even react, and instead convulsed, constructs of flesh and bone being ejected from its body at phenomenal speed, approaching the ground even faster than their host. They were destroyed by Ozara's fast-acting Scimitar. She then turned her fire on the beast's face, aiming for any obvious orifice, but having no effect. She screamed in rage and despair as it hit the ground, biochemical reactions resulting in an explosion that sprayed spores in every direction.

"No!" Ozara screeched, attempting to incinerate any spores she saw with her engines. Hunhow's low laughter faded into static as the rift closed, motes of energy falling through the sky like snow, quickly consumed by the swarm of plague flies released by the Leviathan.

Marie sank into the ground before Vulture could kill her, reappearing a short distance away from the pair. She and the Octolings staggered as the pressure wave from the Void Blade's destruction hit. Marie sighed; it was a small hope.

 _Please, let me be wrong_. she thought.

Her fantasy was shattered when a roar filled the air, and she looked up in time to see the leviathan emerge from the portal.

"Not again." She sobbed, and ensnared Vulture and Aegis while they were distracted, dragging them into the ground and to Shast's mansion.

"No! Take us back! The mountain needs us!" Vulture snapped.

"You can't save them. You won't be able to protect them." Marie said. "I can. I need to bring them all here to do so."

Raaz ran into the room, and immediately spotted Marie.

"Hey, I got as many that would come here."

"Right, good. I'll be back with the mountain."

She sank into the ground, appearing again on the mountain's slopes. It was dark now, a swarm having obscured the sun. Working as fast as she could and ignoring the growing buzz, she placed a hand on the ground, spreading the souls she held within herself into the ground, towards the souls she could feel inside the mountain. She engulfed them, taking hold of each of them, restraining them as they panicked and struggled against her. When she had everyone, she pulled them into the ground, straining with the effort. She battled her way to Inkopolis, very nearly passin out with the stress involved with transporting so many people. She screamed as she surfaced, shaking as she relinquished control, every fibre of her being alight with pain. She couldn't even bring herself to reflect it onto one of the souls she held for she was certain her unfortunate victims would perish if she did so. She wiped the blood away from her nose and stood, barely noticing the she was being helped by both Callie and Mira. As she raised a hand, the Octoling took hold of it, speaking to her.

"Rest first. You have to do whatever you're doing first time."

"Right... Right..." She breathed in and out- all superfluous, but the act somehow made her feel better. "Right. Here we go."

The Tenno watched from above as the Infestation spread, trees withering and dying as they were consumed, the blight expanding at an increasing rate. One particular front was moving at high speed, straight for Inkopolis. Zantzi had focused his fire on it, to no effect. It simply moved though deeper soil and emerged closer to its target.

"It's no use." He said. "It's spreading too fast to contain it."

"Get back to the dojo and defend it as much as you can until we can close off some of the upper levels. There's nothing else we can do." Ozara said. Four Archwings and five landing craft converged on the Dojo, Ruben running to the nearest console and locking down the lower levels and the top floor.

"We have two floors to work with, the rest have been compromised already."

"We can reclaim them later. Everyone get in."

The Tenno grouped up in the Observatory as the Technocyte plague approached Inkopolis, watching with hearts heavy with guilt as it drew near.

"It's our fault."

"We couldn't have known Hunhow would attack." Ozara barked at Zantzi.

"But one of them told me that opening the rift would destroy the world. She was right."

The Infestation began to grow into the city, overrunning entire buildings. They turned away, unable to watch. They didn't notice the barrier of black crystal that grew around one of the estates, safeguarding it from the superweapon.

Three days later, Zantzi, alongside Mu and Ruben, were stood inside an airlock. They had successfully reclaimed all of the airtight floors from the Infestation, removing every trace from the many halls and corridors of the Dojo. Only the lower two and uppermost levels were still held by the Infestation- they were exposed to the air, so any advances they made were quickly undone by encroaching spores. The airlock cycled, pumping the sterile air back into the dojo before the outer doors opened, the noise of the Infestation filling the air. Mu went first, activating her Firewalker ability and burning away the plague around the door. She was armed only with a Tonbo, the weapon she had equipped before becoming stranded. Ruben stepped out next, pointing his Akvasto around the ground outside, searching for any signs of Infested life forms. Attached to his back was an Anku. Zantzi was last, the doors hissing shut behind him and Forma sealing it shut. He carried his Hek, his Marelok and his Jat Kittag- hardly the optimal weapons for fighting off Infestation, but it was adequate.

"Talk to me." Ozara said on the radio. "What's it like out there?"

"Hell." Ruben said. "It's hell." He aimed and fired at a tumour, watching it explode. "Tumours everywhere. I imagine we'll run into some familiar adversaries on our little trip."

"I don't doubt it. Just bring as many weapons as you can back from Zantzi's Orbiter. And try not to attract attention."

Zantzi took the lead, leading the way through the ruined soil. The husks of trees lay around the Dojo's second impact crater, some charred, others mutated beyond recognition. Zantzi crept up on a charger and flattened it, killing it instantly with his hammer. Seeing no more life forms, the trio climbed out of the crater, disappearing into the forest of flesh.

Their trek to the again-downed orbiter was uneventful, but nonetheless they spent it on edge, constantly scanning for life forms and other threats. When they found the downed craft, they had to burn away the Infested matter that had overtaken it. Inside was just as bad as the outside, but the door to the Somatic Link had remained steady, much to Zantzi's relief. He headed for the inventory station, pulling out all the weapons he owned and piling them on the floor. Ruben stared at the pile.

"We will not be able to carry them all."

"I'll have to call in my Liset."

"But the weapons will have spores on them! They're contaminated."

"If I put them through the deployment tube, they'll be sterilised. Ozara?"

"Yeah? Did you find it?"

"Yes, I need you to send my Liset."

"You are going to attract a lot of attention."

"We can deal with it."

Moments later, the sound of engines filled the air, Zantzi's Liset descending into the clearing, accompanied by alarming cries and howls of the Infested.

"They're coming. Start loading the tube."

Ruben carried an armful of weapons outside, keeping one of his Vastos in hand and ready. The tube cycled, and he balked at how few weapons fit inside.

"This is going to take a few minutes!" He shouted, gunning down the first chargers that arrived.

Mu began ferrying weapons out of the Orbiter and to the Liset, transferring the pile there. She took over from Ruben, taking it upon herself to load the weapons in. Ruben trained both guns on the approaching horde, emptying his remaining shots into it, reloading, and continuing. The shrieks grew in volume as the horde grew, the life forms that had occupied any ship that made planetfall congregating to consume those who would fight back. Zantzi and Ruben fought back-to-back, bullets and bolts of lightning keeping the horde at bay. Spears erupted from the ground, skewering the densest crowd before Mu carried on transferring weapons. When all were inside, she got into the tube herself, disappearing into the Liset.

"Ruben! Go!"

The scientist looked between the ship, Infested and Zantzi. He leapt up and unleashed an Overload, stalling the horde as he entered the Liset. Zantzi span and released a stunning Disarm, retreating to the ship. As the tube rotated again, he attached himself to it, wincing as a piercing screech filled the air. He looked for the source and found it. At the edge of the clearing stood what once was probably an Inkling, its body twisted and hunched, its beak having grown to horrific proportions. It screeched again as the Liset took off, propelling itself towards the windshield. Ordis saw it coming and dodged, the Inkling falling back towards the ground.

"Good grief." Ruben said. "I expected this, but even so."

"There's nothing that can be done for it now. The kindest thing would be to put it out of its misery." Zantzi said.

"Leave it. We're hauling too much for us to risk it."

The flight back to the Dojo was as uneventful as it was short. Once the seal had been made, the three began unloading weapons before leaving the ship, the sounds of the outside now inaudible. Each Tenno carried an armful of weapons to the Observatory, placing them on the centre platform. Ozara set to sorting them.

"Very successful trip, I see. How bad is the outside?"

"Unsalvageable." Ruben said. "The safest thing to do would be to bomb the entire planet from orbit to get rid of the spores, but we can't do that. We don't have enough weapons."

"Anything else worth noting?"

"The indigenous have been infected."

Ozara stopped for a moment, glancing at Ruben.

"Did you scan it?"

"No chance to."

"What can you tell me about its abilities?"

"All we know is that they screech loudly and jump very high. And this was an Inkling."

"We don't know what the plague will have done to the other species on this planet." Zantzi added.

"Then we'll be heading into enemy territory without any knowledge of their abilities." Ozara lamented.

"Come again? We're doing what?"

Ozara stood up and walked to the centre of the room. The projectors flickered on, showing a map of the land around them, the city of Inkopolis sitting at the edge of the projection.

"This is the land around us. The Dojo is in the centre. I've been sending drones out with various scanning equipment. Optical." The map did not change. "Thermal." The map became a mass of red. "Neither of these are helpful, but there was another one I did, which was light intensity."

The map changed again, and most of it became a shapeless glare of light, apart from a perfectly hemispherical section of the city. Zantzi tilted his head.

"What is that?"

"I don't know. It absorbs all light shining onto it. The pictures I took show that the Infested are giving it a wide berth too. It's not natural, but we need to know what's causing it and if it can help us purge the planet."

"So let me get this straight." Zantzi said. "We're going to be running into enemy territory where we have no idea of the enemy's abilities, just to investigate a lift-absorbing anomaly that _might_ help us?"

"Do you have a better idea?"

Zantzi shook his head.

"When do we leave?"


	20. Chapter 20

Marie felt the impact as the Leviathan hit the ground, the ground lurching with the force. She estimated she had about a minute. Around her, the citizens gathered began to panic, screams and rapid whispers filling the air. Many of the Octolings present were still reeling from being dragged a long distance underground. Vulture kept his smouldering glare on Marie at all times. She ignored him, still recovering herself from transporting so many people.

 _Fifty seconds._

She stood up, leaning heavily on Raaz as she did so, waiting for her limbs to stop shaking.

 _Forty seconds._

Groaning, she allowed her tar to spread, forming a perimeter around the estate, nudging citizens into range when needed.

 _Thirty seconds._

She began to raise her arms, black crystal emerging from the ground and growing upwards, curving inwards and forming a hemispherical barrier.

 _Twenty seconds._

The sky was soon blocked out by the crystal, and the estate grew dark. Marie could feel the Infestation approaching from below the ground.

 _Ten seconds._

She grew the barrier downwards as well, forcing it deep into the ground before closing it off, creating a sealed space free of the plague. She sighed in relief. She had done it. Inside the shelter, phones were being used to light the darkness. Understandably, people were scared. She had quite literally pulled them out of their homes without explanation and trapped them in a bubble with total strangers. She owed them an explanation.

"You owe us an explanation." Aegis snarled, her fingers twitching with violent intent.

"I do." Marie raised her voice. "I am Marie Cuttlefish. I'm the one who took you from your homes and brought you here."

The crowd went silent.

"For the last ten years, I have had hidden behind a mask, hiding the scars from an incident a decade ago. This incident gave me powers that are both great and terrible. I can manipulate souls." She gestured to the barrier she had formed moments before. "Four thousand seven hundred and ninety one souls make up this tar, and I can channel it into crystals that are nigh indestructible. I can cheat death and avoid normally lethal injuries. However in doing so I reflect the damage onto one of my souls, which invariably kills it. They aren't dormant, and I learned how to speak with them. No, that's a lie. They speak with me, telling me things from a world that came long before ours. They told me that those Tenno, in their bid to escape, would inadvertently destroy this world. I tried to stop them, but they didn't listen and unleashed this Infestation. The world is no longer habitable, except this bubble."

Hushed whispers hissed around the crowd.

"If you knew..." Aegis started, pointing an accusatory finger a Marie. "If you knew, why did you take so long? Why not warn us straight away?"

"If I had hijacked the news network and told you that an alien plague would drop out of a hole in the sky, would you have believed me?"

Aegis lowered her arm, grimacing.

"You do have a point there. But my point still stands! What took you so long?"

"Speaking with the long dead takes time, and most of them do not speak our language. Having to learn several new languages wouldn't work, but other souls here helped me, attempting to translate for me."

Aegis backed down. Marie turned her attention back to the crowd. Her hands moved to her mask- a black background with a red target crosshair over where her right eye would be- her fingers releasing the clasps. She moved it away from her face, the front most members of the crowd gasping in shock as the rest of her face became visible. She didn't allow whispers to propagate.

"There you have it; all that I am laid bare. I want to help you, as does Raaz. He is also survived the same incident as me, and has some powers." The young man had his hand pressed to the ground, eyes closed. His eyes snapped open and he disappeared underground. Marie continued. "There's not much space inside this bubble, but there's a trick I've been taught. I can keep you asleep, and keep you alive by burning matter from outside, turning it into energy for you. While sleeping you'll be kept inside a virtual world, so to speak. The option will be there to move between this world and the dream world."

 _Survivors found, bringing them in._ Raaz told Marie.

"Inside the dream life will be as normal as it can be, aside from the knowledge that you're in a dream and the real world has gone to hell. Anyone else could help me maintain things here, research the Infested and figure out a way to drive it back."

Raaz burst from the ground, hauling five passengers. He was drenched in sweat and was breathing heavily. The five passengers looked around, thoroughly confused by their sudden change in environment. Raaz helped them to their feet, the pair looking at Marie with a mix of fear and curiosity. She nodded towards them before continuing to speak.

"So, if you want to step into the dream, please come forward."

"Comms check."

"Zantzi, clear."

"Ruben, clear."

"Tohn, clear."

Mu simply sent a ping.

"All good. Ruben, do you have your codex and Synthesis scanners?"

"Plenty of both."

"Zantzi, health, ammo and energy restores?"

"Thirty of each."

"Tohn, fire-based weaponry to drive off the Infested?"

"Ignis, corrosive and heat modified Staticor, Silva and Aegis."

"Mu, crowd control and Void Keys?"

One ping- an affirmation. Mu was holding a Tonkor, a Sonicor and the Jat Kittag. A container attached to her back glowed a blinding gold.

"Alright. I'll be your eyes in the city. I'll use my Itzal to move from building to building and cover you with sniper fire. Once you four go through the airlock I'll follow. To reiterate, we will inspect the smaller of the two anomalies first. It's in the main part of the city, at the top of an apartment block. Are you ready to start?"

Four affirmations met Ozara's ears.

"Good. Cycling airlock."

The air was pumped out of the chamber, the hiss of the pumps slowly fading as a vacuum was established. Air from outside was then pumped in, passed through carefully repaired filters to ensure that no spores entered the Dojo. The outside doors then opened. Tohn stepped out first, Ignis primed. He checked in all directions, incinerating the Crawler that was lurking beside the door.

"Clear."

Distant thunder rumbled directly above the Tenno as they emerged. Ruben looked up to find the source.

"That is not natural. Ordis?"

"I am sorry, but without the rest of my scanning equipment there is no way to tell what that storm is."

Far above them, blue-grey clouds swirled just beyond the atmosphere, golden lightning lancing across the eye of the storm.

"If I had to guess, I'd say that was a remnant of the Void Blade's use."

"Alright, stop gawking. We don't want to be out here any longer than is necessary." Zantzi said, almost having to pull Ruben away. They began their journey to the city, Ozara quickly catching up on foot despite the Itzal attached to her back. She didn't want to use it unless she had to, since using an Archwing in open atmosphere required constant propulsion to stay in flight, and that quickly drained power.

The first hour of the journey was uneventful. No Infested entities were encountered, and they slowly drew closer to the city. Behind them, the storm constantly worsened. It was only when they got within a kilometre of the city did they spot something abnormal.

"Down!"The five Tenno immediately dropped to the ground, lying amongst the assimilated remnants of plant life. Ozara and Ruben crawled forward, the former scoping out the creature they had spotted while Ruben attempted to scan it. The entity was entirely black, save for some green markings that glowed in the murky light. Through her scope, Ozara could see that it was not organic, but was instead composed of crystal. It appeared to be composed of just a body and a head, and was utterly motionless. When Ozara zoomed out for a wider view, she saw a Charger creeping up on the entity. She zoomed in to watch. When the Charger got within ten metres of the entity, it moved, arms appearing from its body as its three eyes focused on the Charger. It rose up slightly before slamming its arms down, hands erupting from the ground and ensnaring the Charger. Both it and the entity sank into the ground.

"Ruben?"

"I saw it. Scans show no similarities to anything we know of."

"Form up." Ozara said, and the Tenno stood up. "There's a new entity we're going to dub Harvesters. You'll know it when you see it, it's made of black crystal. Do not engage, as we don't know their capabilities, aside from an effective range of at least ten metres. Understood?"

Affirmations all around.

"Good. Let's keep moving."

Ozara took the lead, scaling the first building she could while the others headed into the overwhelmed city. It wasn't long before they spotted something moving in the ruined shops. An Infested organism stumbled out from a music store, spines that served in place of hair trembling. It was emitting a constant gurgle as it breathed. Ruben scanned it.

"Ozara, is that rifle silenced?"

"Yes, but there's more inside the shop."

No sooner had she said that when an Inkling emerged, previously-pink tentacles dulled and blotchy with blood. Ruben scanned it too. The Infested urchin hissed at it, spines flaring up. The Inkling hissed in response. The urchin turned and a volley of spines perforated the Inkling, the unfortunate creature falling backwards and exploding in a spray of pink and spores. Shrieks erupted from the shop as more Inklings emerged, attacking the urchin. Zantzi gestured upwards, and the Tenno scaled the buildings, watching from the rooftops as the Infested Urchin was liquefied by the Inklings' attacks. Ruben had Ordis take virtual notes of their attacks.

"I think it would be wide to keep to the rooftops." He said. The Tenno nodded in agreement before moving on. Outside the city, the storm raged.

Traversing the city took longer than the Tenno anticipated. Nerves and synapses had grown through buildings, and tripping one would alert the entire city to their location. Not only that, but a single Infested organism catching sight of them would have the same result. The Tenno were experts of survival, but a city of Infestation attacking en masse would be far too much for them. A careful mix of stealth and speed saw the Crimson Hammer reach the apartment building in three hours. Protruding from the uppermost floor was the edge of a sphere. The Infested were not in site, with good reason: there were several Harvesters guarding it, completely still like blackened pillars. Some were rooted to the wall, remaining there by unknown means.

"Crap. I count fourteen Harvesters."

Ruben lowered his codex scanner.

"We have no idea of their capabilities, so engaging is suicide. We do however have one silent weapon, so if Ozara attacked from a different angle, I could catalogue the retaliation."

"Is that as good as it gets?" Tohn asked.

"I'm afraid so. We simply don't know enough about these things."

One of the Harvesters focused on a Charger drawing close to the building and twitched. The Charger recoiled before collapsing. The Harvester approached the body and disappeared into the ground with it. Ruben tilted his head.

"Whatever that was, it was too fast to see. Ozara, I recommend using a Void Key to power up your Vulkar."

"No point in playing it safe. Give me a minute."

Using the Itzal, Ozara teleported to one of the other nearby buildings. After Ruben confirmed that the Harvesters had not caught sight of her, she activated Penumbra, the ability muffling the sound and light of the Void Key. Inside her sphere of invisibility, Ozara took aim at the furthest Harvester in view and squeezed the trigger, the extra power supplied by the Void Key making the recoil noticeably stronger. While the silencer stopped the sound of the shot, it did not stop the sound of the bullet travelling through the air. Her shot connected with the head of the Harvester, and it sank into the ground. The remaining focused directly on Ozara's position. She moved immediately. Seven of the Harvesters split apart, becoming a dense black fog that prevented Ozara from scoping out another target. The sphere absorbed the mist, becoming distinctly larger. The remaining five Harvesters were nowhere to be seen. Far too late did Ozara realise that one was behind her; as she turned to face it, its eyes and markings glowed more intensely momentarily, and sudden, precise attacks crippled her Warframe, and the Harvester took her with no resistance, dragging her down the building and into the ground.

As soon as Tohn had seen a Harvester appear behind Ozara, he turned and fired behind him, catching the other four Harvesters in his flames. They quickly vanished. He snorted.

"Cheap trick."

"Ozara, can you hear me? Come in Ozara."

Zantzi's message was answered by static.

 _Impossible. Only the Void interferes like this._

"I can't reach her."

"Shit. Well, the anomaly is unguarded now. We should break in while we have the chance." Tohn said, taking a Void Key from Mu.

"Wait. We meet to be precise. Ruben, you have my Quanta, don't you?" The Volt unfolded the weapon. "Great. Use a Key and cut through the barrier."

The remaining four Tenno made their way to the building where the barrier was, Tohn, Mu and Zantzi standing guard while Ruben powered up the Quanta with a Void Key. He took aim.

"I will begin."

He began low down, slowly raising the beam with the intent of making a doorway. It was slow work; even the Void-powered Quanta was struggling to pierce the sphere of black crystal. Soon though, he was on his way back down again, and a section fell away, trailing black mist as it fell. The Tenno quickly entered, all corners covered by some form of firearm. Zantzi lowered his weapon slightly.

"This is a house?"

"Not quite. I'd say most of it was outside the sphere. This appears just to be a bedroom. And the centre of the sphere is... Here. This container."

Lying flush with the wall was a glass window, and inside was an ornate mask, lavishly decorated with gold and ivory. Ruben noticed two handles, one on each side of the door, and pulled them. The cupboard opened, revealing a collection of many more masks.

"These are not cheap party masks."

"Whoever lived here had a huge sentiment attached to these. Leave them be."

Six warning pings flashed inside Ruben, Tohn's and Zantzi's helmets. They whirled, opening fire on the Harvester that was dragging Mu into the ground. She was summoning spear after spear, driving them into the mass of black crystal. Its eyes flashed once and Mu sagged, and she was quickly pulled through the floor.

"Damn it!" Tohn kicked the bedside table over. Ruben ran to the door and looked outside.

"Our opening is closing! Everyone out!"

The three sprinted towards the exit. Whilst running through the kitchen, Zantzi recognised the three statues on the tables as his Noggles, and picked them up as he ran past. Zantzi, being the fastest, dived out first, followed closely by Ruben and finally Tohn. The sphere sealed itself and all of the air inside was forced out, along with any spores that had drifted in due to the Tenno's incursion.

"This is not good. We're down to three. We may not get through the next anomaly." Zantzi stated, recovering the container of Void Keys that Mu had dropped.

"Well if it helps us find Ozara and Mu, we should make our way over to the other sphere. They have to be there."

Crossing the city with a smaller group had been much easier, even with the loss of their overhead support. They managed to avoid any Infested entities, and they were not attacked by any more Harvesters. Soon they were overlooking the second, much larger anomaly.

"Ordis, what was here before the... Incident?"

"A mansion, Operator. Online data suggests that it was once a shelter, and that there were two volunteers there, Mira and Raaz. The owner was- A FISH FREAK- an Inkling named Shast."

Harvesters surrounded the anomaly, completely still as if they were mere sculptures. The ground around the sphere was littered with snapped bones, spines, beaks and carapaces. Zantzi looked again at the Harvesters.

"Do they... Digest their victims?"

"I do not even want to think about that right now." Was Ruben's reply.

The number of Harvesters present was far too much for them, and they knew it. Even with the Void Keys, they would be captured before they even scratched the sphere. Zantzi groaned.

"No way in." Tohn growled.

"We need a distraction. As Zantzi can turn invisible, he could get inside by smashing through the barrier with his Void-powered Fragor. That means you and I, Tohn, have the task of causing a distraction. Here's what I propose we do."


	21. Chapter 21

The plan was simple, but suicidal. Tohn would drench everything in range while Ruben would electrify the water. In theory, that would distract the many Harvesters surrounding the anomaly, allowing Zantzi to jump in, power up his Fragor with a Void Key and breach the barrier. Simple, but hopefully effective. Tohn was already in position, as was Ruben. Zantzi was poised to make the jump to the barrier.

"Now."

Tentacles of water rose beneath the Harvesters, reaching their full height before collapsing into spray that swept around the barrier. Ruben took his chance and began firing bolts of lightning, while Tohn sent barrages against the Harvesters. Zantzi turned invisible and jumped, hammer crackling with golden energy. He began swinging at the barrier, Void energy slowing down the rate at which it regenerated. He fell through the hole he created, shards of black crystal rising up to plug the breach. Zantzi grimaced. The plan had accounted for the fact that Tohn and Ruben might not make it through, but it was still disappointing. He would have to rendezvous with them later. Standing up as the air was pumped out and replaced, he realised he was stood on well-kept grass in front of a mansion. Judging by the number of footprints, there had been a large crowd there recently.

 _Wait, I've been here before..._

He approached the mansion slowly, constantly scanning the area for any Harvesters. He did not see the figure ducking away from one of the windows.

Zantzi carefully opened the door, pointing the four barrels of his Hek inside first before entering himself. Inside was completely spotless and sparsely decorated, the occasional painting hanging from the wall. The staircase going up appeared normal, but the flight going down clearly wasn't part of the building's original structure. The steps were of a slightly different size to the ones going up, but the most telling part was the fact that they were made out of black crystal. Once again, he failed to notice the Inkling watching him from down the corridor. They sank into the ground as Zantzi turned to look down the corridor.

The Tenno soon found the room where he had been imprisoned by the girl with the knives. He unconsciously ran his fingers over the backs of his hands when recalling what had happened as he teleported. Shuddering at the memory, he continued to search the mansion.

"What?"

"Zantzi, the alien, is here. He's searching the mansion."

"Then we must pull everyone down here, before he finds anyone. He'll undoubtedly interrogate anyone he comes across to try and find us. Come on. Let's start moving people."

Zantzi searched each room in order, finding most of them empty. Some of the rooms had a few personal effects on them, some marked as if they'd been held over an open fire. Others were inside evacuated containers, including a book, opened to the last page with every name written in the book highlighted.

"Ordis, can you translate the label here?" He pointed to it.

"House Ledger, year of the Giant."

"Do they not number their years?"

"Apparently not, Operator."

"Have you been able to locate the other four?"

"Negative, Operator. Something is interfering, and I cannot detect their transponders."

"Hmm. Well, we may as well keep searching."

The first floor was the much the same as the ground floor- mostly empty rooms save for a few with personal items inside, some with identifiable information on them, others not. In one room, there was another evacuated container with a book inside.

"Ordis?"

"One moment." Ordis said. "News reports pertaining to recent disappearances, year of the Missing."

"Are you still connected to their Internet? I have a theory."

"Yes. What would you like me to do?"

"Search "Year of the Giant" and tell me what comes up."

"Certainly. Year of the Giant, succeeding the Year of Octavio and preceding the Year of the Missing. So named after Misha, the giant who appeared suddenly in this world and helped fight of the threat posed by the Blue Ring, an extreme group of Octolings."

"Tell me about the Year of the Missing."

"The Year of the Missing, succeeding the year of the Giant and preceding the decade lull. So named after the string of strange disappearances and murders that took place in this year. There is an image here Operator, with a content warning on it. Would you like to see it?"

"Show me."

The image that appeared in his vision was so extreme that despite having seen many horrors in his battles through the Origin System, Zantzi retched.

 _For all its colour there appears to be some highly deranged people in this world._

Ordis removed the picture.

"That was real?"

"As far as I can tell, yes."

"The bodies were..."

"Impaled- LIKE TROPHIES. Yes. Shall I continue reading?"

"Yes."

"This year marked the horrific murders of many citizens, and also the disappearance of teenage pop sensation Marie Cuttlefish."

"So my theory is correct. They name years after the major events that transpire in them. Tell me more about this Marie."

"I'll give you the quick version. Marie Cuttlefish is one half of the pop sensation known as the Squid Sisters, along with her cousin Callie Cuttlefish. Most of their personal lives is not known, apart from the fact that Marie went missing following a brief stay in a mental institution. There is an image gallery, Operator, would you like to see?"

"Show me."

Images of a teenage girl with pale tentacles on stage with another with dark tentacles appeared, amongst others. Another showed her in a straitjacket, in a rather risqué pose.

"She seems quite the character."

"After some more searching, there is an image of her you may find interesting."

"Show me."

"This is CCTV footage, and it shows a girl the same height as Marie wearing a mask. The style of tentacles is also the same. This matches the description of the girl who stabbed you."

"So that was Marie... Something isn't right. Go back to the image gallery of Marie."

Ordis quickly brought up the relevant page.

"Show the dates of the pictures, when were they taken?"

"IMPOSSIBLE- over a decade ago."

"She clearly isn't normal, and I'd wager that she has a major role in this situation. The top floor can wait, that's a part of the structure. That staircase going down, however, that's where we'll find answers."

Heading back to the stairs, Zantzi descended to the ground floor. He stood before the black stairs leading into a seemingly impenetrable darkness.

"Operator, I'm detecting massive interference in there. It's likely we will not be able to contact the outside once we go in. I advise you leave- YOUR WILL- your memoirs here. I can leave a fragment for you, as well as a backup in the Dojo's systems."

"Good idea."

Zantzi spent the next hour speaking to Ordis, recounting his name, clan and purpose, as well as his circumstances leading up to and including him standing at the top of the stairs. A glowing mass of cubes appeared in his hands when he finished talking, and he carefully placed it in the middle of the foyer, along with the Noggles he had been carrying.

 _No use in risking them down there._

Steadying himself and checking his weapons, he stepped forward, slowly making his way beneath the mansion. The stairs travelled down in a spiral, and Zantzi stuck to the outside edge, his weapon pointed in front of him at all times.

"Radio contact lost with the outside."

"Watch my back, Ordis. I don't imagine whoever did this will go-" The stairs began to dissolve. Zantzi groaned. "Easy on us."

The stairs gave way beneath him, the inner and outer walls dissolving too, leaving him out of reach of the true edge of the shaft. He fell straight down into the dark, his Warframe's sensors detecting the rapidly approaching ground. He landed hard, his shields breaking from the force and the rocks of the cavern floor buckling as his fall ended. He grimaced. Standing and looking around, he saw he was in a narrow shaft where presumably the stairs once were. The lights of the mansion above were almost imperceptible. Black crystal grew over the aperture, blocking out the light. Before him was a door leading into a much larger chamber- his guess was that it was around twenty metres in diameter. Seeing no other way through, he stepped into the room and whirled as the passage was blocked again by black crystal.

 _They're preventing me from retreating._

He realised that the floor was covered in a viscous tar, and that it was sapping his energy. He watched the number fall rapidly, draining him in around twelve seconds.

 _Great. No energy and no idea what I'm up against._

He spotted a break in the uniform blackness of the tar; a metallic object in the dead centre of the room. As he approached, it grew upwards, tar forming a body for it. He saw that it was a mask, made of metal and heavily corroded. It growled lowly at him, and with barely a moment's hesitation it charged, claws raised. Zantzi dodged, emptying his Hek into it- it didn't even flinch, its body regenerating far too quickly for the shotgun to do any damage. He dodged the next strike, and the third raked off his shields, almost breaking them. He switched his strategy and targeted the mask, the first round from his Hek staggering the creature while the other three dislodged the mask. The creature liquefied, screams of rage filling the room. Crystal blocking the four exits of the room fell away, and Zantzi pressed on, stepping into another circular chamber into which he was immediately sealed. Seeing another metallic object in the centre again, he opted to skirt around it, sticking to the walls as his energy drained. Despite keeping his distance, it still rose up, taking on an identical form as the previous mask and attacking. This time, Zantzi wasted no time in aiming for the mask, using an energy restore as the tar vanished, taking him back up to two hundred energy. Again, the four exits appeared, and he pressed on, watching his energy drain down from six hundred as he stepped into the tar.

"What...?"

His confusion at his situation almost cost him his life as the mask in the room attacked, Zantzi taking an almost lethal amount of time to get away and destroy the creature again. As the exits appeared, he watched carefully, his energy jumping from zero up to six hundred as he stepped through the doorway.

"What the hell is this?"

He stopped the creature in the room and went back the way he came, and was immediately attacked by a mask. Two shells blasted the mask off, causing the creature to dissolve. He approached the object, picking it up and inspecting it. In its current state it appeared to be nothing more than a metal mask with a downright animalistic expression. Throwing it across the room, he carried on into the next, utterly confused as to how his energy was reappearing each time he stepped into a room. He wasn't staying in each room long enough for his Zenurik Focus to be restoring his energy. The situation he was in made his head hurt. Stepping into the next room, he realised that no matter which direction he came into the room, the door he appeared in was always the door that the mask's chin pointed at. He found that odd. Surely there was no conceivable way that the rooms were being created as he stepped into them. Frowning, when he killed the creature in his current room, he picked up its mask and carried it to the next, regretting it when both masks came to life and attacked in unison, coming close to killing him. After dealing with the two of them, Zantzi sat down, resting his head against the chamber walls.

 _What the hell is this place?_ He thought. _Just how big are these caves?_

He rested for a short while, watching the two masks like a hawk as he did so. Standing up again about five minutes later, he picked one of the masks up and attempted to snap it, the metal resisting far more than its thickness should allow. Placing it down, he took aim and emptied his Hek into it, the metal buckling with the force of each shot before it sheared down the middle, splitting into two pieces and exploding into a darkness that quickly faded. Nodding, he headed into the next room.

"What?!"

He was attacked by two masks again, and after fending both off, he collapsed onto his knees, mind racing.

 _Think... These circumstances are characteristic of something, I feel like something like this has happened before..._

He remembered- the Juggernaut, being armed only with his fists and the message from the Lotus that followed.

 _This is a nightmare?_

Reviewing his experience so far, he thought of every aspect of the caves.

 _Feeling of falling, check. Trapped in one place, check. Put in a difficult situation, check. Attacked by strange creatures, check._

"This is a nightmare!"

As the words left his mouth, his vision darkened, as if he was blinking slowly or falling asleep. When he opened his eyes again, he was in a different cave, submerged in a pool of tar. As he surfaced, he realised that firstly, the tar had broken his shields and armour, and secondly that there was a young woman in a mask standing over him.

"You made it out. That's... Not entirely unexpected, actually."

She held out a hand to Zantzi, and he took it. She pulled him out of the tar, allowing him to stand up on his own.

"You put me in a dream?"

"Yes. Your soul was inside the armour, so it was if I was putting a normal person under."

"When? When did you do that?"

"Let me ask you this instead- how far would you say you fell to get down here?"

"Uh..." Zantzi thought back. "I'd say a couple of hundred meters."

"There's the stairs. See for yourself."

She was pointing over his shoulder. He turned around, seeing a spiral staircase in the wall. He looked into the stairwell, ascending and completing two revolutions before appearing in the foyer.

"Impossible..."

"No, quite possible." The woman called. Zantzi went back down to face her. "The truth is when you stepped onto the stairs, they remained normal before collapsing, pulling you into the tar and therefor into the dream. What you experienced was falling as that took place."

Zantzi felt like he knew the woman from somewhere. The mask and pale tentacles were all screaming at him. He suddenly realised.

"You're Marie, aren't you?"

She looked shocked for a second before smiling.

"I should have known you'd work that out. I saw the imprint left by your computer and figured when you saw me you'd put two and two together. Yes, I am Marie Cuttlefish, former news reporter and pop star, Culus survivor, the person who threw several knives at you and the saviour of most of the population of Inkopolis and the mountain. You do know how many have died as a direct result of your actions, don't you?"

Zantzi found himself unable to meet her gaze. Her expression hardened.

"Look at this from an outside perspective. Aliens drop out of the sky and were warned that if they tried to go home they would destroy the world. They don't listen and they destroy the world. Suddenly, people aren't going to be quite so fond of you."

"Where are my friends?"

"They're further into the caverns. Not one of them have woken up because they were still outside when my Harvesters, as you seem to be calling them, captured them. This allowed me to make a much more convincing scenario with far fewer flaws than the dream you were in. As a result, they have not found those flaws and therefore remained asleep. And while I can wake them manually, it can be incredibly dangerous to do so. Heart attacks and catatonia are apparently common when people are woken forcibly. Or so I'm told."

Zantzi saw someone looking into the room- an Inkling. It wasn't Raaz, but a total stranger. They were old, Zantzi could tell that much.

"Hmm? Who's this?"

The man approached with a speed that surprised the Tenno, pulling a tape measure from seemingly nowhere and took his height.

"Don't tell me... You're the first one that fell?"

"He is. He's the one I interrogated."

"Oh, is that so? Well, I think you owe him an apology for throwing a knife at him."

"That knife pinned my hands together, I'll have you know." Zantzi added.

"O-oh." Marie stuttered. "That was never my intention. Sorry, that must have hurt."

"Them what was your intention, Marie?"

"Shast, I, uh... I was aiming for the suit, to pin it to the wall. The space under the arms was slightly slacker, but he moved unexpectedly. Hey, this is the wrong way around; he caused the end of the world!"

"Hmm, that is true." Shast said. "Well, I'll let you deal with him then."

Shast walked away while Zantzi watched, bemused.

"Just how many people are down here?"

"Too many." Marie said. "Follow me."

Marie walked into the next chamber, and Zantzi tensed up when he saw the two masks in the middle of the room. She picked up on his unease.

"They're to stop anything that somehow makes it out of the dream. They won't attack you as long as you stay right behind me."

The wall disappeared when Marie approached, creating a clear path around the thin layer of tar that covered the floor. Zantzi stayed well away from the dark substance- he swore he could see it coiling. The next chamber caught him off-guard. There were people, around a hundred of them at the very least, living in shelters made of crystal. It wasn't the black crystal that Zantzi had gotten so used to seeing, but enormous shafts of what Zantzi assumed was Quartz. All conversation stopped when the population realised the Tenno was there, and he felt far too tall and exposed. Marie quickly pulled him down to whisper to him.

"They know you did this. Don't expect a warm welcome."

She pulled him into the next room, and he saw that it was far larger than the last. Again, it was circular, but it travelled downwards almost further than Zantzi could see, even with his sensors.

"What is this?"

"This is where I keep the dreamers, the ones who didn't want to live in a bubble. Instead they will live in a dream world that is drawn from the collective memories of all the dreamers here, to live a mostly normal life."

"How have you been able to do this?"

"I've been collecting more souls. This Infestation still has them, and the ones that are not cooked for food I use to create things like this."

"You cooked the Infested for food?!" He yelled, incredulously.

"Yes. The fire inactivates the infectious part and boils off any toxins. They actually taste pretty good."

"So you're sat here keeping around one hundred thousand people living in the past and eating creatures from the future." Zantzi stopped thinking about it. "What about the Harvesters? How do they work?"

"Oh, they're just golems made from terrestrial crystal and possessed by a soul, which turns them black for some reason. They're incredibly useful for things like capturing Infested for food or recovering personal belongings. They're not affected by the plague, but they're only really effective with sneak attacks, otherwise they use more energy than they gain."

"I'm guessing some of these people live in the house above?"

"Yes." And that was all Marie said for a few moments. "I'll take you to your friends."

Before Zantzi could react she had taken hold of him and dragged him down, travelling down the wall of the shaft, right to the bottom. The temperature rose perceptibly as they descended. At the very bottom, four swellings in the tar marked the location where the rest of the Crimson Hammer slept.

"What are they dreaming about?"

"At the moment... They're dreaming they're in their Dojo, discussing how they're going to get back at... Hunhow? Am I saying that right?"

"Yes." Zantzi growled.

"Oh, and you're there too, think of it like an NPC in a video game."

"Hmm."

Zantzi looked at his sleeping friends.

"So all they have to do to wake up is find a flaw in the dream?"

"Yes. It's what I did. Given the flaw in mine was a monster masquerading as my at-that-time girlfriend. Theirs is far less obvious."

"Would I be able to help them?"

"You could, but there's a few things you need to know about the dream. First, if you die in the dream, you die here due to your soul becoming a part of me. That's just how it is, I can't change that. Second, theirs it not like the others here. There's no back door, so you'll be trapped there with them until all five of you escape. Third, the NPC that has been acting as you will transfer its memories to you as you enter. Fourth, you will not be able to leave the area drawn by the limits of the dreamers' memories. That is to say, if someone has never been to Inkopolis, it will not be there in the dream and the land will instead be covered in impenetrable fog. Any attempt to walk through will put you back the way you came and remove your memories of it. The closer you get, the less you will want to go into the fog. That last bit is a precaution. On an added note, since you're entering voluntarily, I'll be able to talk to you without waking you up. Do you understand and accept these conditions?"

"Yes." Was Zantzi's reply, with no hesitation. Even Marie was shocked. She used her sight, and saw the conviction and selflessness in the Tenno's soul. She smiled.

"Take all the time you need. You'll be sustained by the tar while you sleep. Hold still."


	22. Chapter 22

**The previous chapter knocked the total word count over 66k words, making this my longest story yet! And we're not done just yet...**

"I'm about to put you under. Just remember what I said- to get out of there again, you need to find the flaw I put in there. I don't know what it is exactly, but you'll know when you see it. You will also be aware of the fact that its a dream." Marie explained.

"I understand." Zantzi replied.

"Very well. I will begin."

Tendrils of black coiled themselves around Zantzi's limbs, exerting enough pressure to break his shields and punch through his Warframe's armour. His consciousness faded as he was pulled down into the dream. As he vanished from sight, Marie's expression hardened.

"It's better off this way."

Raaz appeared beside her.

"Did it work?"

"Like clockwork. All five of them are trapped inside a flawless dream. I suppressed Zantzi's knowledge of the dream. He'll replace the NPC when it next wakes up. They'll stay here and dream forever."

"Probably for the best, but I can't shake the feeling that they could have been quite useful in this situation."

Moving back up to the mansion, Marie inspected the three statues, Cephalon Fragment and glowing container left behind by Zantzi. She had already listened to the information left by the Cephalon, and she had deduced the statues were nothing more than decorations. The container puzzled her. There was an incredible glow radiating from the transparent meter in the vessel, yet, she could feel no sort of energy. She daren't risk opening it, yet she wanted to know what was inside. She took it and left the bubble around the mansion's grounds, took it into the city and created another bubble. Slowly, she opened the container, the glow erupting from the top before abating. Inside were golden artefacts. She recognised them from the initial crash. She could feel the energy inside them. She counted them; there were a total of eighteen keys inside. She realised they were all pointing in the same direction. Frowning, she traced it, lowering the barrier to see what they were pointing at.

"Oh."

She saw the storm raging in the upper atmosphere and decided it wasn't natural. She sent a mental command; she had ordered a Harvester to keep watch on the storm. It would already be on its way.

"You Tenno don't clean up after yourselves, do you?"

* * *

Zantzi woke up in the Dojo, faint sounds of the Infestation in the lower floors bringing him to maximum alertness almost immediately. For a moment, he was unable to remember what happened on the previous day, until I all came back to him. They had entered the Infested Inkopolis, with the intent of investigating the two spherical anomalies. The smaller one around the apartments protected what appeared to be masks, and Zantzi had retrieved his Noggles from there. The second one was far too heavily guarded by Harvesters to even consider trying to breach it. They had made the decision to withdraw for the time being and continue monitoring the storm whilst repairing the rest of the Dojo when possible.

Zantzi stood up and stretched, making sure his weapons were attached before heading out of his quarters, walking to the Observatory. Ruben and Mu were already waiting there. They quickly stepped away from each other when Zantzi walked in. He faltered.

"Am I interrupting something?"

"N-no, not at all." Ruben said quickly. Mu sent two pings- a denial. "She just had concerns regarding our current situation."

"Uh-huh."

Zantzi carried on walking, sitting on one of the steps furthest away from the door and dismantling his Hek, cleaning out the barrels and everywhere else. He did the same with his Vaykor Marelok. Tohn and Ozara walked in within five minutes of each other when Zantzi had finished cleaning the pistol. The five stood around the central console. Ordis was floating there.

"So, what's the plan for today?"

"A cull." Ozara said. Ordis changed into a heat map of the city. "As you can see there are spots where the Infested are gathering. We need to get in and destroy them before they get out of hand. Sound good?"

There were affirmations from the rest of the Crimson Hammer.

"Swell. Once again I'll be your eyes above. The rest of you distribute weapons as you see fit."

Zantzi switched his Fragor for a Lacera. Tohn kept hold of his fire-based weapons. Ruben picked up a Karak Wraith, Vasto Prime and Destreza. Mu took her Tonbo and kept hold of the Tonkor and Sonicor. Several minutes later, the five were back outside, making their way over to the ruined city.

Inside was still Hell on Earth. The Infestation had noticeably grown in some places, and there were many more organic sounds- hisses, screeches and rattles drifted on the air. The Tenno busied themselves with clearing the Infestation from buildings, destroying hives when they came across them and generally thinning the numbers. But something didn't feel right to Zantzi. To him, something felt off. It wasn't just the presence of heavy fog at the far side of the city, or the storm that raged above the Dojo. Something was gnawing at him, and it worried him. Something must be wrong if it was making him feel like that.

"Zantzi. Hey! You still with us?"

Ozara had both hands on his shoulders and was shaking him. He moved her hands off him.

"Yeah, I'm fine."

"Yeah but, we're not."

Zantzi focused and looked around, seeing that all around them, on the buildings, in the buildings and all over the street, were Harvesters. Every single one of the crystal golems were staring at the group, blocking the road ahead. Their message was clear: _None shall go past this point._

"Let's call it for the time being. Come on." Ruben said, backing away whilst monitoring the Harvesters. The other four followed, backing away from the barricade. Behind the Harvesters sat dense fog. It taunted Zantzi with its mere presence. He turned away. The Tenno called their landing craft upon reaching the outskirts, getting away before the Infestation even had a chance to attack.

* * *

Marie was back under the mansion, and was heading to the dreamers' shaft when Raaz called her name.

"What is it?"

"Got two more wanting to be put under."

Stood in front of Raaz were a boy and a girl, and Marie recognised them immediately. The Inkling girl looked as if she was going to explode with excitement.

"Ara and Flint, huh. Alright, follow me."

As Marie turned around, she heard Ara squeal to Flint "She said my name!". She smirked; it was nice to know people still looked up to her despite the circumstances. She led the pair to two empty spots in the shaft.

"Okay, stand still. The dream world is identical to this world, just before the Infestation hit us. The other difference is that in the Plaza there will be an anomaly, like a black pillar growing out of the ground. Willingly stepping into the pillar will wake you up here. Got it?"

Ara and Flint both nodded.

"Do copies of us already exist in there?" Flint asked.

"No, this dream has no Non-Player-Characters. Everyone in there is a real person. I also need to tell you that dying inside will kill you outside, so it's not just a dream, alright?"

Both nodded.

"Great. Hold still, and please don't scream. It makes me look bad."

Marie started with their legs, her tar coiling up and holding them in place. Next, the arms, restraining them for their own safety and comfort, not that it mattered to Ara and Flint, they wouldn't be awake. Besides, Marie made sure nobody withered away while dreaming. Looking up from her task, she saw that Ara was close to tears. Marie saw Flint reaching for her hand and moved the restraints accordingly. Ara almost immediately calmed down, looking at Flint for reassurance. He smiled gently before turning to Marie.

"Carry on."

Marie moved the final, crucial tendril to the back of their heads, watching it sink in. Ara and Flint both went limp, unconscious, and Marie lowered them into the tar.

 _I'll give them an hour to settle in. I'll check on them then._

Marie busied herself by checking that each dreamer was getting enough nutrients from the tar- a percentage of Infested entities caught were immediately submerged in tar to be dissolved for food for the dreamers. That way, nobody withered. Next, she dropped to the bottom of the shaft, checking the sleeping forms of the Tenno and checking the status of their separate dream. Nodding in approval, she headed up to the mansion, doing her rounds on everyone living there, making sure they were still healthy. She had observed amongst everyone there a paling of complexion- without the sun, people were bound to lose skin tone, yet it was one of the few things Marie couldn't do anything about. Any opening would let the spores in and spell the end of everything. Snapping herself out of her depressive mind-set, she headed to a specific chamber in the caverns, catching Mira when she launched herself at her.

"No! You got me again!" She exclaimed, to Marie's amusement. Mira had an objective to tackle Marie, and thus far she had not succeeded. Marie was just too strong. "I'll get you some day."

"I'm sure you will. Just dropping in for a few before I go and check on some dreamers. You need anything?"

"A hug."

Marie knew better than to deny that request. They wrapped their arms around each other, and Marie was reminded once again of just how warm the Octoling was. She broke off.

"I'll see you later."

Marie sank into the ground, appearing in the shaft and locating Ara and Flint.

* * *

It was a strange feeling, being forced unconscious like that only to wake up again inside a dream. Flint's entire body was numb following his insertion into the dream, but feeling was slowly returning, most notably in his right hand where he felt heat. Looking around, he found the source to be Ara, who appeared to be in shock. Her eyes were wide and unfocused, and her mouth hung agape. Unable to free his hand from her vice-like grip, he stepped into her field of vision and shook her gently.

"Ara, Ara come on."

Her hand dropped his as she came to, and she slowly sank to the ground. Flint supported her as she fell, kneeling with her as she recovered.

"That was scary." She sniffed. "She was inside my head..."

"It's okay, we're okay. We're a team, right?"

Ara wiped her tears away and nodded.

"Good."

Flint helped her to her feet and assessed the surroundings. They were in the plaza of Inkopolis, and it was mostly normal. However, in the centre of the plaza was a black pillar and information boards stood around it. Flint moved closer to read them.

"To return to the real world, step into the pillar. No thanks."

"Death in the dream will kill you in the real world due to the destruction of your soul? What?" Ara carried on reading. "The fog marks the limit of the dream. You cannot go further unless someone who has memories of the area beyond joins the dream."

"Ara, I don't think we need to read this. It's basically life with a back door to the real world. Come on, let's to and find our house."

The pair navigated their way through the dream city, Flit noticing wisps of fog in dark corners and in certain buildings- floors and places where no one in the dream had been before or remembered. Flint stopped thinking about it and focused on the walk to his and Ara's house. Twenty minutes later, they were stood outside the structure, Ara taking a key out of her pocket and unlocking the door. Everything inside was exactly as the pair remembered it. The lights flickered momentarily, Marie stepping out from one of the rooms. The major difference between this Marie and the one in the real world was impossible to miss- this dream world Marie had eyes.

"Figured it out?" She asked.

"This place is made of memories." Flint answered.

"Bingo. Now, I'm sure you've read the signs, but just remember the thing about death and also objects. Objects cannot be taken between worlds. Okay?"

Flint smirked.

"Knew it."

"Come again?"

"You can read our minds in here, can't you? You saw that I hadn't read the part on objects."

Marie closed her eyes and raised her arms in a shrug.

"Are you a reporter or a detective? Yes, I'm inside your head right now. It's how I build and maintain this world. I also know where everyone is at all times, and what they're doing. That last part isn't fun." She stopped, looking off to the side. "Some people are into some weird stuff."

"Gross." Ara said.

"However it does mean I can intervene before anyone does anything stupid. Other than that, enjoy yourselves. Don't think about it too much, your world has quite literally been brought back from the dead. Enjoy it."

The lights flickered again as Marie disappeared. Ara and Flint looked at each other.

"So what do you want to do for the rest of the day?"

* * *

Marie stood up inside the dreamer's shaft, heading back to the common area and leaving Ara and Flint to dream. She checked her watch- almost six in the evening. There was nothing else to do in the evening- there was enough Infestation to feed everyone for the next week, including the dreamers, so the golems were not needed outside, save from those acting as guards and the one she sent to monitor the storm above the Tenno's Dojo. Said golem contacted her with words she hoped not to hear.

 _It is growing. There is something on the other side._

The golem's sight appeared in her mind, and it showed the storm- it had indeed grown, and the eye was incredibly blurred- she could see a flicker of blue in the eye.

 _What's on the other side?_

 _We do not know._

Marie thought for a few seconds.

 _Keep an eye on it. Let me know if anything happens._

Their communication ended, and Marie retired to her home. She did not find Mira inside- instead, she heard faint singing. Smiling, she followed it to the source and joined the crowd watching Callie and Mira sing.

* * *

"Our mission today is to research away to drive back the Infestation permanently while leaving the area habitable. Got it?" Tohn said.

The rest of the Crimson Hammer nodded before falling out- some headed into the labs while others headed outside with various different weapons. After the daily extermination of all Infestation getting too close to the Dojo, research began, tissue samples disappearing into the labs where Ruben and Ozara performed scaled-down tests on its growth rate and weaknesses. Throughout the day, several field tests were performed, ranging between flamethrowers imbued with an incredibly powerful pesticide to slow the growth of the Infestation to Void-powered lasers to create areas where the Infestation couldn't thrive. The downside to that was no life could thrive there. The idea was soon scrapped. Following the day's research, the five Tenno met up in the observatory, discussing their results.

"The pesticide works at slowing the Infestation, but it's too inefficient to make." Ozara stated. The other members nodded.

"The virus bombs were a colossal failure. They were ineffective and now certain Infested entities are powered with viral damage now." Tohn said. "The firebombs were also a failure. Cheap for a quick drive back, but the Infestation just regrows at the same rate."

"I feel like we were getting somewhere with the Void Energy. It was the easiest to clear the Infestation with, but more work needs to happen to deal with the resultant contamination." Ruben explained.

"Tomorrow, focus research on Void energy then, since it sounds like the only viable option. That being said, try combining the pesticide with the firebombs. They could be useful." Zantzi reasoned.

"I think that's everything." Ruben said. "Fall out for the evening."

Four of the Tenno began to retreat to their personal quarters, save for Zantzi. He knelt down by the windows, looking out across the ruined world and thinking.

 _What am I missing? There's something that feels wrong about this world._

In the distance, the ever-present fog taunted him.

 _What is that fog, truly?_

In the doorway of the Observatory, Ozara watched Zantzi for a few seconds before leaving.

* * *

 _Marie._

A voice roused Marie, and she was immediately alert.

 _What is it?_

 _Something has come through._

Marie's stomach dropped.

 _Can you describe it?_

 _Blue, crystalline. White glow in its centre. Probably about one hundred and eighty centimetres in height. We are too far away to tell for certain. It appears to be looking for something._

Marie committed those details to memory, alongside the sight of the Golem watching the new arrival. As she watched, the blue entity stopped, compacted itself slightly and took off, flying back into the storm.

The next day, the Crimson Hammer continued their tests, deeming the pesticide firebombs a dead end and focussing on the Void Energy instead. They had discovered that even in small doses, Void Energy was incredibly harmful to the Infested, which was an important step forward when considering the planet would need to be habitable following the removal of the Infestation. With some valuable headway made, the Hammer retired for the evening, Zantzi again staying in the observatory to contemplate the fog and the world they were in. This time, Ozara joined him.

"What's eating you?" She asked, placing her hands on his shoulders.

"Would you say this world is correct?" Zantzi asked.

The question caught Ozara off-guard. She tilted her head slightly.

"In what way? Correct how?"

"Correct as in it feels right."

"Well, the Infestation is here, and that's not correct. So no, I guess."

"Hmm." Zantzi hummed, lapsing into silence.

"Okay, now I know something is wrong. This isn't like you. Tell me what's wrong."

"I feel like there's a hole in my memories."

"Every one of us does."

"Aside from the Zariman and what happened before this. I mean here and now, I feel like I'm missing something really important."

"Want me to take a look? I could have a poke around inside that head of yours and sort out what's bugging you."

"I'd appreciate that."

"Alright, medbay. It'll be easier if you're lying down, just in case you freak out."

The pair moved to the newly-restore medical bay, Zantzi lying on the examination table while Ozara psyched herself up. She restrained Zantzi.

"Really?" He snarked.

"Yes. Memories suddenly being recovered can be rough. So... Precautions. I'm about to start. You ready?"

"Yes."

Ozara forced Zantzi's head down before placing her palm directly on his forehead. She found that direct contact always made mind reading easier. Zantzi squirmed as he felt Ozara's psychic fingers in his mind. He was glad he was never on the receiving end of any of her attacks; she was quite capable of killing him with only a thought.

"Hmm, I'm not seeing anything abnormal so far... Apart from the usual Zariman hole. I'll keep looking."

The movement Zantzi felt inside his head was something he would never get used to. He knew that Ozara could help, but the sensation of having your mind read was extremely uncomfortable, and the slightest mistake on Ozara's behalf would severely injure Zantzi.

"Jeez, stop worrying. You're blocking me out. I'll need to get rough if you carry on."

Whenever someone worried during a reading, dark shadows would numb her psychic tendrils and make precise movement very difficult- that was the reason her psychic attacks were so violent, she had to overcome the resistance and plant an irresistible suggestion. As Zantzi calmed down, the fog disappeared, and she could see his mind clearly again. She trawled around his mind, searching for any abnormality, and soon found it.

"I've found a... I don't know, some sort of vault? It's weird."

"A vault?"

"People with any sort of overwhelming conviction or morality can guard their thoughts, and this usually takes the form of a vault or safe."

"That's the first I've heard of it."

"Which means you didn't make this vault."

* * *

A mental alert woke Marie up.

 _The vault has been discovered._

"Oh no..." She groaned, sinking into the ground.

* * *

"This vault does not bear your mental signature. You didn't create it. Hold on." She opened a radio link. "You three, get in here. Medbay."

Minutes later, the three other members of the Crimson Hammer were stood around Zantzi.

"I've found a vault inside Zantzi's head, and it isn't his. I'm about to open it."

The three prepared necessary safety precautions in case Zantzi needed to be subdued. Inside Zantzi's head, Ozara attacked the vault, the full force of her psychic might crashing against it. At first, nothing happened, much to Ozara's amazement. Then, a tiny crack formed.

* * *

"No, no, no, no..."

Marie emerged in the dreamer's shaft, dropping to the bottom and reaching for Zantzi.

* * *

Like a failing reservoir, the vault shattered, the force of the returning memories evicting Ozara. Zantzi stiffened up as the lights flickered, Marie appearing in the room. There was total silence, followed by screaming as Zantzi remembered the anomalies and the house, the civilisation beneath and the dreamers. He looked at Marie, whose golden eyes narrowed in defeat.

"You betrayed me. This world is a dream."

Zantzi dissolved and the other four members, having witnessed a clearly impossible situation, also vanished. Marie pulled herself out of the dream as it collapsed due to its source material disappearing. Marie stood up and prepared a blade as the Tenno awoke, pulling themselves out of the tar one by one. Even though Marie had hid their weapons, she knew they were almost unstoppable in close quarters nonetheless. She winced. Instead of running, she issued a single mental command and the tar responded, coiling around the Tenno and stringing them up, immobile. Ozara yelped in pain as she awoke, the sudden pressure of thousands of minds hitting her like a train. She immediately curled up, sheltering her head ineffectually in her arms. The other four looked between their psychic teammate and Marie.

"What are you doing to her?!" Zantzi demanded.

"I'm not doing anything." Marie said. "You woke up."

"You betrayed me." He growled. "You let me think I was going to help my friends and instead you trapped me there out of spite."

Behind the Tenno, Raaz appeared.

 _Wait._ Marie said to him. "It was safer for you this way."

"How..." Ruben started. "How long have we been under?"

"For you, since Zantzi got inside here. I got you along with Tohn just outside. I captured Ozara first outside the apartments, then Mu second while you were inside."

"Why? Why trap us in a dream?"

"Let me ask you this instead." Marie interrupted. "What do you suppose this tar, and by extension, the power source of the Harvesters and the black barriers actually is? Think carefully. There's a huge clue."

Ruben looked at Ozara, who was crippled with pain. He turned back to Marie.

"Minds."

"Not quite, but close enough. Souls, Ruben. And what do you suppose happens when you attack the tar?"

Ruben could no longer bring himself to meet Marie's gaze.

"You know, don't you? That's why you can't look me in the face and tell me. You can't suppress your destructive instincts to consider the consequences, can you? When you shot my Harvester, when you broke through the barrier, your gold lightning killed many souls. Innocent people who were tortured in life and only had demons for company. They were happy to help and live within me. And you killed them. Fifteen souls killed- one in the Harvester and seven on each barrier. Why do you think Ozara's in so much pain? The other souls in the tar are all screaming "murderer" at her."

The noise was giving Marie a headache too, but that was nothing compared to what Ozara was feeling. She was visibly trembling, muttering under her breath "I'm sorry, I'm so sorry" as her teammates and friends watched, unable to ease her pain. Then, one voice caught Marie's attention over the cacophony, and she focused on it. It was a girl's voice, and it was screaming in fear. Marie realised that it was Ozara.

 _A child? These Tenno are_ all _children?_

She called the souls to stop, and each one withdrew. Ozara sagged, shaking violently. Marie lowered her to the ground along with the rest of the Crimson Hammer. Zantzi immediately took Ozara in his arms- she clung to him like- _like a child would her father_. The realisation was accompanied by a punch of guilt. Raaz approached slowly, appearing at Marie's side.

"That thing that came through earlier, it's back. It's scanned your Harvester or something, and now there's this weird noise."

"Let me hear."

The tar projected the sound- a strange alarm that immediately set the Tenno on alert. The four conscious Tenno looked at Marie. For the first time in Ruben, Zantzi and Tohn's memory, Mu spoke.

"We need our weapons and the location where that noise originated. Otherwise everyone here will die."


	23. Chapter 23

"Marie, everyone here will die if we do not stop what is coming." Mu said. Her voice was quiet and monotone, but there was no mistaking the urgency in her voice.

"Is there a way you can show us what your golem is seeing?" Ruben asked.

Marie nodded, forming the tar into a screen and placing her hand on it. The black crystal became a view of the Dojo, blue figures hovering around it. The Tenno's fears were confirmed; the Sentient had arrived. As they watched, more shapes fell from the sky, fighters the Tenno recognised as Conculysts and Battalysts appearing on the ground, glowing with energy. One Conculyst approached the golem, the crystal's attack doing nothing to slow it down as it bludgeoned it into pieces, the link it held with Marie disappearing. The Inkling's expression soured.

"Those are the fighters of the Sentient." Zantzi explained. "They're highly adaptable and excessively lethal even in small numbers. Anything you throw at it, it will adapt to it, and take much less damage from it. You cannot let them find you."

"We're going up top, you five are coming with me and you're deciding on a battle plan. You're more suited to fighting them, and even if you think you can't beat them, it is your fault they're here. I won't take no for an answer."

Marie ensnared all five of them, pulling the Tenno up the walls of the shaft and into a large room with a table- an actual, wooden table, not black crystal.

"One moment." Marie said before vanishing again. She quickly returned with Vulture and Aegis in her grip. The pair shot death glares at the Tenno in the room. Raaz appeared on his own less than a minute later. The Tenno looked at the Octolings. The Octolings glared back.

"So, uh-" Zantzi started.

"Why are they awake?" Aegis asked Marie. The Inkling shrugged.

"They woke up. And we need their help."

"Oh yeah? What could we possibly need their help with?"

Without a word, and before anyone could react, Ozara had crossed the room and slapped Aegis. She recoiled with open fury in her eyes.

"What the fu..." She trailed of as some of Ozara's memories played out in her mind. She watched as Sentient fighters surrounded Ozara, attacking the armour as well as figure that was held in the Warframe's arms. She watched as she was attacked by another Warframe carrying a great-sword, who proceeded to impale Ozara with that sword. The memories stopped coming. "Oh."

"That's what we're dealing with. We would appreciate your help, since your world could die again in the next few days." Ozara snapped.

"Now that we're on the same page, let's start. What can we do to stop these things?" Marie asked.

"Enough damage will kill a Sentient." Tohn said. "Bastards like to adapt, so that's difficult. However, they may be vulnerable to Void Energy."

"If that's the case, how are they coming through that storm? That's Void Energy, isn't it?" Marie said.

"That portal leads to conventional space." Ruben stated. "It was so that we wouldn't destroy your world with Void Energy. In the Sentient's case, they would just have to stay in the dead centre of the storm to avoid being dissolved by the Void. Covering themselves in something like Ferrite would also provide protection."

"You mentioned adaptability." Vulture spoke up. "What do you mean by that?"

"It means that as a Sentient fighter takes damage, it will change to take less damage from that specific source. For example, if you attacked it with a flamethrower, it would adapt a resistance to fire, so the best course of action is to switch strategies once you see the light it emits pulse and change colour." Ruben explained. "They are a royal pain to fight."

"Don't worry about damage sources." Tohn added. "We have plenty of different ones."

"The real problem is numbers, though." Zantzi continued. "On that display then I saw at least thirty Battalysts and Conculysts. Those are pretty severe odds."

"So we need a way to build up numbers." Vulture confirmed. "No-one organic can go outside without dying."

"I can help with that. Raaz too. We can create armour that will block out the Infestation." Marie stated. Her words caused Zantzi to look up slightly before he spoke.

"You... You're going to hate me for asking this question, but it'll help us even the numbers. Marie, what are the capabilities of the tar?"

"Formation of crystal which has as many uses as you can think of, creation of dreams when submerged, telepathy with other people in contact with the same batch of tar as you, soul reading, that's all I know so far."

"Can it..." Zantzi was loathe to ask the next part. "Can it enslave souls?"

The room went silent. All eyes were on Zantzi. Marie's lip curled up in a snarl.

"I hope you realise what you're asking me to do is downright criminal, even taking my other powers into account. Enslaving souls? What purpose could that possibly serve?"

"Enslave was the wrong word to use." Zantzi backtracked. "My idea was this: we could use the prisoners of Hades. The way that thing is built I'd put it at a ninety five percent probability that the interior is completely clean. If I remember correctly, they have enough supplies to last for weeks."

"Get to the point." Aegis deadpanned.

"How about this: Marie puts a suggestion or something in each physically fit prisoner's soul, preventing them from attacking anything that isn't Infested or Sentient, give them the armour then have them help us. Again, through the use of a suggestion."

Marie considered Zantzi's idea. It was a good idea, but she hated the thought of controlling another's actions, even if she wasn't going to be actively controlling them like a puppet master.

"I hate it, but I can't think of anything better." Vulture stated.

 _So my options are remain good and face overwhelming odds, or commit evil to destroy a greater evil._

"I could help too. In fact, I could plant the suggestions." Ozara said.

 _We have no other options._

"Fine." Marie muttered. "Fine. We'll do that. We'll move out as soon as possible."

 _Mira, Callie. Did I make the right choice?_

* * *

Marie was soon flying towards Hades prison inside Ozara's ship. Aside from the Landing Craft's owner, she was the only person on board.

 _"I can't come with you."_ Zantzi had said. _"The chances are they'll recognise me."_

Marie hasn't pressed the subject any further. Since the Dojo was overrun with Sentient fighters, Ozara had summoned her Scimitar remotely, the craft appearing outside the barrier around the mansion in less than a minute. It had attached itself to the barrier, and Marie had withdrawn the crystal long enough to allow her and the Tenno to get inside. She replaced the crystal immediately before takeoff.

The prison appeared before them, Ordis guiding it in to land on the enormous doors over the plaza. Powerful cutters removed the door around the deployment tube, and the Tenno dropped into the prison, lifting her hands when the guards inside pointed their weapons at her.

"We're not looking for trouble." Ozara said. "We're just making sure everyone is alright."

She prepared her suggestion and, as Marie dropped from the Landing Craft, she released it, the guards falling over where they stood as they fell asleep. Ozara headed to the Alpha block whilst Marie headed towards Delta. The Inkling forced her way into the control pod, reading the mind of the unconscious operator to learn how to use it. Several button presses later, an alarm rang out and the cells of the Delta block's A corridor all opened, the ladders above them remaining in place so that the prisoners did not escape. As Marie positioned herself in the centre of the corridor, she heard sounds of confusion from the prisoners inside. Sighing, she pulled them all out of their cells at once, their confusion quickly replaced by fear and anger as they were entangled by black tendrils. She restrained them and arranged them in a circle around her, counting twenty prisoners. She ensured they were equal distances from her- the tar would mimic her movements exactly for each person simultaneously. She reached for the person in front of her, an anemone who glared at her fiercely. He, and the rest of the prisoners, went limp as Marie exposed their souls and made contact, a minuscule amount o black leaching into the otherwise uniform spheres of coloured light.

 _You will obey myself or the Tenno. You will not attack anything that isn't a Sentient or an Infested creature._

She retracted her tendrils, allowing each soul to sink back into the appropriate body. In the Alpha block, Ozara had been able to implant the suggestion into each prisoner without even opening the cells. When she had spread the suggestion to every person in the Alpha block, she moved to Beta, doing the same thing. Meanwhile, Marie opened cells, displaced souls and generally caused a lot of discomfort. The guards remained asleep through all of this, not a single one regaining consciousness while the pair programmed the mind of each inmate. The two met up again in the Plaza.

"That's everyone." Ozara stated.

"Hmm. As much as I hate messing with people's heads, we should remove the guards' memories of us."

Ozara spoke up as Marie reached for the nearest guard.

"There's no need. Part of the sleep command was that the guards would not remember anything that happened within a minute of them falling asleep, and that they'd have a full memory of their missing time when they wake up."

"I'm just making sure."

Marie forced the guard's soul out of his body, reading it and humming in interest.

"There's another prisoner. Two, in fact. This one overheard it from a pod operator."

Marie picked one of the corridors and jogged to the security pod, slipping through the metal and reading the soul of the operator.

"Ozara, when I press this button, the other three security pods need to have their buttons pressed too, within a second."

"There's only two of us, and I can't get into the pods.

"Give me a minute to make some golems."

Moments later, three small, black creatures scuttled into the plaza, each one appearing to have no distinguishable shape. One vanished down each corridor and into the security pods. A second later, a different siren to the cell opening siren sounded, and the floor in the centre of the plaza split apart, a square elevator rising up. Marie joined Ozara next to the platform. The inkling studied the control panel- it only had three buttons- up, down and emergency. Shrugging, she pressed the down button, the lift carrying its two passengers down beneath the prison. As they drew close to the bottom of the shaft, warning lights in Ozara's Warframe sounded.

"Marie, block off the shaft and armour up. There's Infestation down there."

Black crystal blocked off the light from the complex above, and a thin layer completely encased Marie. The lift reached the bottom of the shaft, and the stench was appalling- it stank of death. Ozara's sensors picked up eight dead bodies and two heat signatures. One was in the corridor. Said corridor was pitch black, so Ozara switched on her head-mounted lights, lighting up a strange humanoid creature- it was overrun by the Technocyte Plague, and gurgled lowly. It turned to face the source of light, its flesh pulsing with colour.

"What the hell is that?"

"That is... That was Seida. Don't look at him."

The tar had already cut off Marie's sight- she could instead use the crystal surrounding her to sense her way around via haptic feedback. Ozara simply looked down at the ground. Heavy footsteps slowly drew closer.

 _"Join ussssssss..."_ A voice whispered. _"Become unified..."_

"Is that...?"

"Seida. Yes."

"Why do you know this prisoner?"

"He's the monster that manipulated Callie into stabbing Misha, a dear friend of ours."

The footsteps stopped, as did the gurgling. Seida had gone completely silent.

 _"The flesh hates that one..."_

Marie sensed Seida's movement and pre-empted his attack, striking at where the crystal told her he would be. Her bladed arm connected with his flesh, and in that moment Ozara drew her blade and cut Seida neatly in two, his blood not leaving any mark on the Dakra Prime.

"He didn't seem to like you very much." Ozara snarked.

"I used his own trick against him and caused him to hypnotise himself. Golden apple ornaments will never be that useful ever again."

"Uh-huh. In any case, I'm still detecting one more heat source. Let's check it out."

The pair moved to the other cell in the corridor- this one was still intact; the Infestation must only have recently breached Seida's cell. Ozara began tapping away at the control panel while Marie stood guard. The door hissed as the airtight cell opened; Marie sealed themselves and the door off from the Infestation to protect the inhabitant of the cell. Ozara looked inside as the door opened, a female voice from the inside shouting out.

"Finally! I get that you hate me and all, but starving me isn't- who the hell are you?"

Marie frowned at the voice, and pushed past Ozara to see the prisoner. Up until that point, Marie thought her mood couldn't get any worse that day. The prisoner blew that assumption out of the water.

"Oh hell no."

* * *

Ruben was staring at the eighteen Void Keys the Tenno had remaining, thinking of how best to use them against the Sentient forces that were slowly growing in size. While the Sentient reacted violently to Void Energy, he wasn't sure if he could use the golden artefacts without damaging the planet's biosphere. Applying them to a weapon was a far safer way to use them rather than the powerful, unrefined shot burning one directly produced, but only Warframes could handle the massive recoil created by the powered up ordinance- Ruben was certain any Inkling, Octoling or other inhabitant of Inkopolis would, at the very least, lose an arm if they pulled the trigger of a primary. Possibly even a secondary with the sole exception of the Hikou Prime. Melee weapons were also right out: Zantzi only had one Dark Dagger and it was large enough for an Inkling to use as a sword. The Ether Daggers were far too dangerous to let any non-Tenno use. Everything else was far too big for the inhabitants of the world to lift, let alone use in a combat situation. Again, there were two exceptions- Marie and Raaz, but he assumed they would be using their own abilities.

He looked up when Raaz walked into the room and placed a scale diagram on the table. Ruben studied it.

"What is it?"

"A weapon."

When Raaz mentioned it, Ruben realised it was a gun. It looked like it was meant to be a pistol, but instead of a rifled barrel, it had a tapering barrel with an incredibly small aperture.

"How does it work?" Ruben asked.

"Like a water cutter, just longer range. With ideal materials, it would be effective up to a range of about ten metres. There is one other variant."

He turned the blueprint over.

"This one has a wider aperture, and crushes rather than puncturing. You did say the Sentient can adapt."

"I did. With the resources we have, we could make... Fifty of each, I think."

"Aren't all of your resources at your Dojo?"

"No. After the Infestation came we transferred it all to our Landing Craft. And..." Ruben checked a timer, and Raaz watched as it ticked to zero. Space bent in the room and a large machine appeared. "The Foundry is here too." He opened a slot in the machine and fed the blueprint in. "Fifty of each, as fast as you can, Ordis."

"How long will that take?"

"At this rate, probably at least twelve hours. Still, it's a damn sight faster than building each one individually. These are also much smaller than our weapons, so they can be built faster. I hope you realise you've solved a major problem, Raaz."

"Not a problem. Someone has to clean up your mess."

 _Savage little one, aren't you?_

"You wound me."

* * *

"Well, you have got to be the last person I expected to see come through that door."

The cell was completely featureless, aside from the door. In the exact centre was a rack with several straps and hard points. The occupant was wearing a straitjacket that was firmly attached to those hard points, and the straps were tight across their shoulders, forehead and around their legs. They wore a muzzle that covered the lower half of their face, completely covering their mouth. It didn't matter, Marie recognised her with just the mocking voice and blue tentacles.

"Atra."

Despite the muzzle covering her mouth, Marie knew the Octoling was grinning like a woman gone mad.

"Hey, long time no see. How about this: you take this mask off and feed me, because I've been starved for a day already, then we'll talk. Sound good?"

"No."

"What? Come on, you saw what's outside, where are the guards? They should have fed me yesterday."

"The guards are dead." Ozara said.

"And I bet you killed them. Aww, Marie's turned to a life of crime! Do you love me that much? Sweet mask by the way."

Instead of a vocal response, Marie simply extended her tendrils into the corridor and dragged Seida's body in, encasing it in transparent crystal. She held it up for Atra. The Octoling's eyes narrowed.

"What happened to him?"

"Infestation." Ozara said. "It killed the guards too. And I think you're going to starve to death if Marie decides to leave you here."

"Perhaps I'll leave the door open to let the spores in."

"Wait!" Atra exclaimed. "Wait, I'll go along with whatever it is you came here for, but just feed me first, please?"

Marie glared at Atra for a few more seconds before turning away, heading for the corridor.

"Keep an eye on her." She told Ozara. The Tenno looked at the prisoner.

 _What has she done to make Marie hate her this much?_

"So what are you? Some tin can from the future?"

She sucked in air between each sentence. To Ozara, she sounded like she was in pain.

"Are you alright?" The Tenno asked.

"Could be better. Do you see this drip in my neck?" Ozara could see the tube. "It keeps me in constant pain. Could you remove it for me?"

Ozara approached, studying Atra's pained expression and the drip intently. She reached out to the tube, placing her fingers on it for a few moments before removing her grip and flicking it instead, causing Atra to grimace in genuine pain.

"Life tip, don't try to lie to a psychic. If I removed that, you'd strip this chemical out of your blood and into your own venom, allowing you to escape the restraints by turning into an Octopus."

Atra groaned and dropped the act, opting to glare at the door instead. She started to wriggle in her restraints when Marie appeared, carrying several vacuum-sealed packets and a bottle of Chroma Gel.

"Ohhh, food! Food..."

"If you don't like substances B and E, then you're out of luck."

"Lady, if you've been starved you take anything."

Atra continued to shift in her restraints as Marie reached up to remove the muzzle. She groaned when Marie stopped.

"I'm going to remove the muzzle. If you bite my hands, I'm going to cut off the limb and choke you with it. Understand?"

"Yes, oh my god, do you think I'm going to bite you when food's on the line? Come onnnnn..."

Marie undid the buckle and pulled off the muzzle, handing it to Ozara. It was tiny in her hands. Marie held up the straw of the bottle to Atra's mouth, allowing her to drink for a few seconds before moving it away and ripping open a packet of food and holding that out instead, paying close attention to the Octoling's blue-tinged fangs. Once Atra had finished the first packet, Marie held out the bottle again. Atra sighed in satisfaction. While she was preoccupied, Marie reached forward and touched her chest, reaching for her soul.

"Whoa whoa whoa, do you wanna lose that hand? Get off right now before I- oh..."

Atra went limp as her soul was dragged out of her, the dull blue orb glowing weakly. Marie took it in her hands while Atra watched, equal parts powerless and confused.

"This is your soul, Atra. See how little it shines? That's because you're evil. Now, I'm going to do something to your soul, and if I slip, it'll hurt. A lot. So I'd be careful if I were you."

Atra didn't move. She barely breathed while Marie put something inside.

 _What the hell has she become?!_

Atra felt her strength return as her soul sank back into her chest. She pressed against the back of her rack, trying to move as far away from Marie as possible.

"What the fuck was that?"

"None of your concern." Ozara cut in before Marie could respond. "Marie, let's get everyone out and go."

"Wait. I want to test the suggestion." Marie held her hand up in front of Atra's mouth. "Bite it."

"Lady, you are sending very mixed signals."

"I don't care. Bite my hand. I'm not going to choke you with it."

Marie nodded to Ozara, who stepped forward and undid the head restraint- Atra was now free to move her head. She looked at Marie uncertainly.

"Do it. Bite me."

With a suspicious frown, Atra bared her fangs, visible drops of blue hanging from the tips. She moved her neck and head almost too quickly to see, but her fangs stopped millimetres from Marie's flesh. Atra frowned again, this time in confusion, trying to will her jaws into closing, but getting no response from her own body. She pulled back, and closed her mouth.

"What?"

"Good. It works. Ozara, we're leaving. Can you project your shield around a larger area, to protect Atra?"

"Yes. I'll wheel her out."

Marie armoured herself while Ozara extended her shields to cover the prisoner. The Tenno followed Marie out of the cell, Atra's eyes going wide when she saw the Infestation in the tunnel.

"Bloody vacuum-sealed cell, I didn't hear any of this."

The trio ascended in silence. Upon reaching the main body of the prison, Ozara checked a timer.

"We have five minutes before the sleep suggestion on the guards wears off."

"That's plenty of time. I'll meet you back at the mansion. I'll bring the prisoners with me."

Marie extended her tendrils, pulling every prisoner out of their cells and into the central area, knocking them out first, including Atra, before covering them in crystalline armour.

"See you back there."

Marie and her passengers vanished into the ground, and Ozara quickly scaled a wall to reach her Landing Craft. The ship quickly replaced the rectangular section of door and flew away. As she took off, the guards inside the prison woke up.


	24. Chapter 24

"What's our final head count?"

"Five Tenno, eighty three armoured prisoners, two afflicted Inklings, and Vulture and his Scavengers." Zantzi said. "It may not be enough, but we have much better odds now."

"Okay." Marie said, placing both hands on the table. She, Raaz, the Tenno, and Vulture were stood around it. On it was a map with ninety five markers. "The prisoners will be making up our main force, and they've been equipped with the weapons Raaz designed. Those, along with the blades Marie's armour provides gives them three damage types. The Tenno can pick off the Sentient as they take damage. However, remember that the mission is the bomb." She pointed to a gold marker on the table.

"Yes, the bomb." Ruben continued. "This bomb has been designed to obliterate three things: the Sentient, the portal, and the Infestation. Now, the Void Keys that power the bomb will be enough to destroy Sentient fighters. The synthetic reactant will deal with the portal, while the biological agent should counter the Infestation. It's an incredibly complex piece of machinery, and requires enormous power to detonate and close the portal. So, it needs to be taken into the Dojo, where it'll feed off the reactors inside. If all goes well, the intense Void energy within the bomb's containment field will melt through the obstructing Dojo, firing its reactant upwards to fuel the currently incomplete reaction that caused that portal to form. The second stage will then detonate, which should annihilate the Sentient and the Infestation- the former with sheer Void energy, the latter with a biological antiserum of our design that will dissolve the Infestation."

"Due to its size, it needs about two Tenno to carry, but Vulture has volunteered the services of his Scavengers, and they're willing to make the ultimate sacrifice for the sake of this world." Ozara said. "They'll be carrying the bomb, escorted by Ruben and Tohn. Marie's armour will protect them if they're still near it in the first stage, but if the second stage activates and you're not at a safe distance, Void Energy will rip you apart. Understand, Vulture?"

"I understand the risks. Do not underestimate our resolve."

"Once Hunhow figures out our plan, he'll undoubtedly send fighters towards the mansion to kill the civilians. That's where Aegis and her Defenders come in. They'll protect the mansion, backed up by Raaz. Mu will also be there to provide extra damage types."

"What are the exact capabilities of the Sentient fighters?" Raaz asked.

"Alright, we've only seen three types of Sentient so far." Ruben began explaining. "The blue ones are called Oculysts, and they're forward scouts. They have no weapons, but will immediately summon fighters if they detect a threat, and are practically indestructible. There are two types of fighter, and both can adapt. First, there's the close range Conculysts, which have clubs for arms. They attack primarily by charging and hitting very hard. They can also perform a spinning attack. The other thing they can do, that doesn't concern you, is a shield-leaching attack. Since you won't have shields, that isn't a problem for you. Then you have Battalysts. These are the shooters of the Sentient fighters, and are much more dangerous. Their main attack is to shoot energy bolts that explode on impact, but by far their most dangerous technique is their laser attack; if you see the glowing core of a Battalyst leave its body, back away quickly or get directly over or under it, because it'll start to spin and emit a random spread of lasers that cause powerful explosions a their point of impact. The other thing to note about Battalysts is that they can project their adaptations onto other fighters, so their destruction should be your top priority."

"Sentient fighter arms are interchangeable, so take that into account as well." Tohn added.

"That covers just about everything the Sentient can throw at us. So remember, escorting the bomb is the top priority. The detonation process will begin immediately after pushing the button so that the area surrounding it is flooded with Void Energy to prevent the Sentient from attacking the bomb. You'll have ten minutes until the final explosion, so you need to get out of range as fast as you can." Zantzi summarised. "Any questions?"

The people stood around the table shook their heads.

"Good. Let's go."

As the other people in the room filed out, Zantzi made his way to Marie. She glared up at him.

"What?"

"I would like to see Isla. There's a very real chance that even we Tenno will die out there, so..."

"How sentimental. Fine, I'll take you to her."

Marie had taken hold of Zantzi and dragged him into the ground before he could react. They reappeared about halfway down the dreamer's shaft, and Isla's sleeping face was easily recognisable to Zantzi. He looked at Marie.

"Is there any way I can talk to her?"

She grabbed the back of his head, and Zantzi's view of the world flickered- first to black and then to a steam-filled room. Vapour immediately began condensing on his shields. A sudden scream- Isla's scream- broke the silence, and Zantzi looked down.

"Oh! Uh... Crap."

The Tenno looked around in a panic. His fears were confirmed- he was in fact inside a bathroom. The scream trailed off after he spoke.

"Zantzi?"

 _Why does hearing her voice always cheer me up?_

"U-uh... Towel!"

He threw the towel in the general direction of the voice- judging by the lack of splash, Isla had caught it. She rose out of the gel, preserving her modesty with the towel.

"How did you get in here?"

"Marie sent me in, on my request. She didn't tell me you were, uh, bathing."

"Gah, I missed the flicker because my eyes were closed."

 _This is what the Stalker must feel like, appearing in a flicker like that._

"But why are you here? Marie told me that she had you and the others put in a dream so that you'd never wake up."

"We escaped. But I'm here to tell you that in what we're about to do, there's a real chance of me or some of my friends dying. I came here to just say that-"

He was cut off by Isla's open hand colliding with his shield- she had slapped him.

" _Stop_. Good grief, cease and desist. Stop talking like you're going to die. With that mindset you surely will. You best come back, and if you don't, I'll give you hell in the afterlife if your death wasn't memorable."

Even Zantzi was shocked by Isla's words.

"Uh, thanks? I guess?" Zantzi couldn't think of a more eloquent response.

"Come closer." Isla said. When Zantzi complied, she wrapped her arms around him in a hug. "You come back, alright? You've got this."

"Uh, towel." It had dropped away when Isla had hugged him.

"Don't care."

* * *

Barely had Marie taken Zantzi back up to the surface when Ozara approached her. She groaned internally, regretting doing so when she saw Ozara's shoulders sag slightly- she was not used to having other mind readers around.

"What is it, Ozara?"

"If you don't mind me asking, what's the deal with Atra? Why do you hate her so much?"

"The short version is that she and her organisation are responsible for an attempt on mine, Callie's and two of our friends' lives. The rest of her Blue Ring then proceeded to assassinate Misha and even my grandfather, who had nothing to do with the situation. I'll spare you the details of what happened after."

"Oh. I'm... I'm sorry I asked."

Marie shrugged and walked away, heading outside the mansion to where she had "stored" the prisoners of Hades. She pulled them out of the ground and began to explain the battle plan.

"You are our main force. You'll be supported by two Tenno who'll direct you on the battlefield. I'll be there too. Your job is to attack anything that looks like it's going for the bomb. Just remember, our enemy is powerful. Here's everything you need to know."

Marie forcibly implanted Ozara's memories of the Sentient into each prisoner's mind.

"Oh and by the way, don't give us any crap of 'you expect us to die out there'. You're not the only ones risking your lives, and if I die, all of the tar and black crystal will seek out Raaz- you'll lose your protection and die by the plague."

The last part wasn't completely true- only liquid tar would return to Raaz, so the prisoners and Vulture's Scavengers would not all die if she did.

"The armour I'm about to give you responds to thoughts- if you want a blade on your arm, you'll get one. Just don't fire off too much of your armour at once otherwise the plague will get in."

"What is this plague?" One prisoner, an urchin woman spoke up.

"Ask Atra." Marie replied before forming the armour on each prisoner. The Octoling glared when each prisoner looked at her.

"Fine. It eats people."

"And that's pretty much all there is to it. So try not to lose your armour."

She left the prisoners inside a small sphere so that they didn't wander into the settlement. She then located Vulture and his Scavengers.

"How's everything going here?"

Vulture stepped to the side, revealing what Marie assumed was the bomb. She could see why it needed two Tenno to carry- it was huge, a metre and a half long and half a metre in diameter. The hull of the device was interrupted at regular intervals by Void Keys, and Marie counted ten keys inlaid on the device.

"The five of us can just about carry it." He noticed the case Marie was carrying. "What's in there?"

"A weapon."

"Uh-huh. In any case, could you send Ruben and Tohn over? We need to make sure we can work together."

Marie didn't need to bother- Ruben appeared seconds after Vulture had spoke, followed by Tohn. The former held out five headsets.

"These are on our frequency. The lenses will give you a reticule and allow us to communicate. There's also a mini-map that will show where the fighters are at all times. This has the added bonus of an objective marker too, so we know where we're going."

The scavengers each equipped a headset before replacing their bird-like masks. Tohn tilted his head.

"Are those things airtight?"

"They will be." Vulture said. "Marie's going to be augmenting them." The Inkling nodded in affirmation.

"If you say so. Well, we'll be defending you out there. Don't to anything stupid."

Marie walked away, approaching Aegis instead. She was sparring with her Defenders, the eleven Octolings throwing themselves at each other, attacking and defending at very high speed. Mu and Raaz were watching from close by. Aegis saw Marie approaching and yelled for the melee to stop. The fight stopped almost immediately, the Defenders lining up, breathing heavily. Mu joined them, along with Raaz.

"You all okay here?" Marie asked.

"Oh yeah, totally fine. Pre-mortem party right here. We've been fighting each other, Raaz and Mu, practicing, y'know?"

"Just don't tire yourselves out too much. Mu, do you have both cases?"

The Nezha held up two cases- the first one was cylindrical and contained glowing fragments. The other was securely locked. Raaz took the second case from Mu.

"Good. Remember, only open that second case if you absolutely have to, or you may end up fighting the contents."

Mu nodded. Raaz nodded.

"Great. We'll be moving out shortly."

Half an hour later, the attacking force was massed by the barrier. A hole appeared in the black crystal, the deployment tube of Ruben's Landing Craft appearing there. He, Tohn and the Scavengers entered it, the bomb attaching to the hull as it pulled away. Zantzi and Ozara were already outside, scouting the battlefield. Marie was waiting for their signal, ready to pull the prisoners into the ground. She looked across the convicts, considering the irony of using evil to destroy evil. She saw Atra's armour had veins of blue flowing through it- she had found a way to channel her venom into her weapons.

"Get into position." Zantzi's voice said. "Coordinates are as follows."

Marie checked her map, set markers on the coordinates and pulled the prisoners into the ground, placing the predetermined groups at their battle points before waiting at her own with the remaining prisoners.

"I count fifty fighters. Beginning mission." Ozara said.

A gunshot, muffled by the earth above Marie, cracked the air. It was followed by a flicker of blue.

* * *

The first abnormality had appeared in the dream. When Ara had woken up, she had been confused to see black writing on the walls- not just the walls, every surface, ceilings, tables and even books had been overwritten by the text. Ara had shaken Flint awake, directing him to the writing.

"An emergency situation is now in progress. This world has been closed off temporarily while it is resolved. Details: precaution in case the Sentient attacks. The Sentient? What's that?" Ara mused.

Outside, people had begun amassing in the cloudy streets; the writing was out there too, in the all alphabets that the Inklings and Octolings could read, and many in strange symbols Flint didn't recognise.

"It's outside too." Flint remarked. "Come on, we're going to the plaza."

The pair were soon outside, walking towards the plaza despite easily being able to super jump there. The text gave everything an unnatural black glow, wisps of darkness constantly peeling off from the letters. The first thing Flint noticed when they reached the plaza was that the information boards had grown, and that the monolith leading to the real world had fractured, the black crystal floating ominously. Flint approached one of the new boards.

"Details." He read. "The Sentient, a malicious alien force, has arrived on this world, and an attack is being carried out against them. As a precaution, this world has been sealed just in case the Sentient attack the mansion. While I am confident they won't be able to break through the barriers I have put up, if they are psychic they'd be able to hurt you here. So this world is closed until I reopen it. Do not worry- the Harvesters will still provide sustenance for your sleeping bodies. -M."

People stepped away from the monolith as it began to piece itself together, flickering black each time a piece slotted into place. Raaz appeared when it was fully formed.

"I hope you all understand, but we will be keeping you closed off. If anyone wants out, leave now. Just bear in mind, you'll be safer in here."

Raaz's words were amplified across the world. No-one moved or responded in any way to suggest they wanted to leave. Raaz nodded.

"Alright, then I am about to seal you in again. Is everyone sure?"

Two people stepped forward and into the monolith. After them, no-one moved.

"Alright then."

Raaz stepped into the monolith. Moments after he vanished, the monolith exploded, the shrapnel flying apart at high speed for a split second before stopping, remaining in the air as if time itself had ground to a halt around it.

* * *

Below the ground, Marie and one third of the prisoners waited. She could feel each and every one of their souls, the dull light clear to her despite the soil in between them.

Above ground, Sentient fighters glided through the air, searching for the source of the gunshot. Ten of the aliens were rotating, looking in all directions. Zantzi and Ozara watched, invisible. Zantzi's weapon was aimed at the leading Sentient.

"Do it."

Seven metres to the right of the Sentient, a volley of incredibly high pressure ink and tar erupted from the ground, piercing straight through the fighters' carapaces. From the left, larger projectiles were fired, forcing the fighters to adapt to the impact damage. Then, from beneath them, lashing blades emerged, Marie and the prisoners bursting from the ground to attack the Sentient. Some precision shooting from Ozara pitched the fighters into the ground, the lights of their core exploding as they died.

"Ruben! Landing zone is clear!" Zantzi yelled.

Marie and the prisoners advanced, running as far as they could towards the overrun Dojo. Overhead, Ruben's Landing Craft hovered in place, the occupants dropping out of it and picking up the bomb as it was placed on the ground. At the same time, Ozara Blinked into the battlefield while Zantzi switched with the first Infested entity that came into view. The Sentient was on full alert, Oculysts flying up towards the portal, presumably to call for reinforcements. More fighters approached from the Dojo. Marie's force met them head-on, the assorted Inklings, Octolings and other creatures circling around the Conculysts and Battalysts, avoiding the swinging arms and spinning lasers as best they could. Marie knew her armour could take several hard hits from a Tenno, but she had been forewarned that the Sentient hits very hard. She watched it happen almost in slow motion- one prisoner failed to dodge a Battalyst's energy bolt and was knocked into a Conculyst's attack- the armour shattered, absorbing back into Marie while the previous occupant panicked, the Inkling firing wildly at Sentient that were no longer attacking her. She began to scream as the spores took hold, and Marie moved to and beheaded her out of mercy. She sensed the drop in moral, and strengthened the will to fight in response. Her force of prisoners barely missed a beat. Zantzi and Ozara had arrived and were now cutting into the Sentient as well, the fighters slowly reducing in number as the fight wore on. Spotting three fighters close together, Marie snapped her fingers, a sphere of crystal appearing around them and crushing them before turning into spheres and impaling them, killing them. Further down the line, the bomb squad had broken through, and were currently running unimpeded towards the Dojo. It didn't last long, as another wave of fighters dropped out of the sky, fifteen of the new arrivals joining the attack against Marie's force while the other ten converged on the bomb squad.

* * *

Atra didn't care that she could die, she was having the time of her life. If she had been told twelve years ago that she would be set free to punch aliens, she'd have kissed whoever told her that. She had figured out very quickly that the armour Marie had given her was psychic, and she had immediately asked if the armour could channel her venom. It complied, and at the present moment, she was injecting a large dose into the fighter her blade was buried in. The Battalyst was twitching spasmodically.

"Go on, attack the Sentient." She told it. She didn't know if the Sentient felt anything, but the primary effect of her venom had a chance of working. Whether the Sentient could feel pleasure was beyond her. She laughed to herself as the Battalyst's core turned blue and it turned around slowly, raising a shaking arm and launching energy bolts at its former allies. Atra's venom had three functions- first, it made its victims more likely to follow her orders. Second, it made its victims who followed her orders feel pleasure. Third, larger doses would kill the victim. Atra reckoned only the first function had any effect on the Sentient.

She frowned when another fighter approached hers, linked with it and adapted, beginning to spread the immunity to the remaining fighters.

"Oh no you don't."

Before Atra could react, Marie burst out of the ground and killed the fighter, preventing it from spreading the adaptation.

 _I could kill her..._

As she thought that, voices overwhelmed her mind- the armour.

 _Okay! Just a joke. Jeez._

* * *

Vulture and the bomb squad were making steady progress. Their strategy was working so far- Ruben and Tohn would meet and fighters that approached, keeping them away from the bomb and far-more-vulnerable Octolings. The Scavengers shot at anything that got too close- the fighting had drawn the interest of the Infestation, and the plague-stricken creatures were attacking indiscriminately.

Ruben's Opticor crackled with energy, the powerful cannon dispatching another fighter while Tohn's tendrils claimed another. The Tenno watched more fighters descend from the portal.

"Ruben! How long would it take us to place the bomb with uninterrupted running?"

"Five minutes, but there's not enough power in those keys to drive off the Sentient, if that's what you're thinking."

 _Damn._

"Just focus on the fight." Tohn said. "Here come more."

They saw the fighters approaching from the front; they did not see the Oculysts descending from above. The nigh-indestructible beings encircled the Octolings, and a second ring of Battalysts formed on top of the Oculysts, energy bolts charging in their arms.

* * *

Raaz was patrolling the barrier. He had already sealed off the dream, and Marie's case was firmly attached to his side, but he was still worried. The land outside was normally audible through the barrier, but it was currently silent. Unconvinced, he pressed his ear to the crystal, and listened. He heard a strange whoosh, and his eyes widened when he heard the siren. He hammered down the button of his transmitter.

"All Defenders- the Sentient is here!"


	25. Finale

**This is it, the final chapter. I hope you enjoy the end of this story, which is my longest yet!**

* * *

The front line had ground to a halt. Sentient fighters were descending in waves from above, immediately replenishing their losses and preventing the denizens of the world from advancing. Atra had failed to dodge a jab from a Conculyst, the Sentient's arm punching through her crystalline armour and sinking into her temple, right onto her left venom sac. Blue vitriol had exploded from her fangs, completely wasted. In response, the armour had cut off the exposed skin and resealed itself, and Atra's bladed right arm made short work of the fighter. She groaned, feeling the warmth of blood on the left side of her face. Looking around, she counted fourteen dead prisoners, almost a quarter of their force, while the Sentient still numbered at fifty. She was something beyond furious. Taking a moment to re-ink the ground, she recovered before throwing herself back into the fray.

* * *

The Defenders burst through the barrier, annihilating the nearest Sentient fighter before it could even react. A quick cast from Mu sent spears into each one, dealing enough damage to trigger an adaptation. The small force of five Sentient fighters was quickly wiped out, each carapace exploding, leaving arms strewn across the floor. Raaz immediately spotted more incoming, pointing them out to Mu. She took the chakram off her back, aimed and threw it, disappearing as it made contact with the nearest fighter. Raaz saw that she had teleported, and that she was leaving a trail of fire where she walked. Mu quickly reappeared next to the Defenders, flickering with blue as her shields recharged. A group of ten Sentient fighters approached the barrier.

"So these are the Sentient." Aegis remarked, stretching her fingers as best she could under her armour. "Okay Defenders! Let's give them a mountain welcome!"

"Lots of battle cries, blood, and fists?" One Defender spoke up.

"Precisely! Let's go!"

The Defenders inked the ground around the barrier, expanding the area in which they could move quickly. Before they vanished, Mu spoke.

"Do not worry about my flames. They will not hurt you."

The thirteen of them advanced, the Octolings tearing ahead by swimming through ink. Raaz prepared a blade and Mu activated Firewalker, the fire spreading towards the approaching Sentient fighters.

* * *

Vulture was at a loss- the Sentient had him, his Scavengers and the bomb surrounded, and they looked like they were about to start shooting. Exactly one energy bolt was fired, Vulture leaping in front of it to defend the bomb before each Sentient was skewered by black tendrils, their glowing cores dimming before vanishing completely, Marie struggling to contain the excess energy. She turned and launched a powerful beam at the fighters on the main front, cutting a swathe through their ranks. The prisoners broke through. Marie turned to Vulture.

"Careful. Your armour can only take one hit like that and remain intact." She replenished his armour with tar. "Get going. There's an opening. And start using the Void Keys. I'm about to open the case."

Marie vanished as quickly as she appeared. Ruben turned to Vulture.

"What's inside the case?" He asked.

"I don't know. All she said was that it was a weapon. Come on, lift the bomb. On three."

On the main front, Marie had reappeared. She noted with some despair that more than half of the force was dead, and watched as the half-living writhed in pain. Only thirty fighters remained she pulled them back behind her, some of them, most notably Atra, complaining about it.

"What the hell? Why are we back here?"

Marie began walking towards the Sentient, the fighters reforming their ranks.

"So I don't accidentally kill you."

Marie opened the case, pulling the heavily corroded mask from its restraints and removing her mask. The air had gone very still, as if the world was holding its breath.

"With this, I become evil, so that I may destroy evil."

She placed the mask over her face. No-one moved, apart from the bomb squad who kept on running despite the malice radiating from Marie.

"Don't look back." Vulture was saying. "Keep running."

Zantzi flinched as the mask made contact, and Ozara staggered as if she had been punched in the gut. She gasped in horror.

"I have never felt malice like this..."

Inside the barrier, Mira felt something was off. The whispering of the crystal had stopped, and the apprehension she felt from the souls within was so concentrated it almost felt physical.

Inside the dream, frost descended, starting with the tallest buildings but rapidly reaching ground level. Flint looked outside, utterly confused, but he could feel something was happening in the real world.

Outside the barrier, Raaz recoiled from a shock only he felt. The Sentient appeared to have noticed it too, and they quickly disappeared in the direction of the Dojo. Aegis lowered her fists.

"Huh?"

Raaz actually screamed, for the first time since gaining his powers, he screamed, throwing the case containing the mask as far as he could.

"Raaz! What are you doing? We need that!" Aegis said, running to recover it. "We need it as-"

"It's evil!" Raaz yelled. His outburst stopped Aegis in her tracks because of how uncharacteristic it sounded. "It's completely evil!"

On the front line, the prisoners watched as Marie fell to one knee, the people there swearing they felt the impact despite Marie not possibly being heavy enough to cause that sort of shock.

"What the hell is going on?" Atra demanded.

"It's malice." Ozara said, very quietly, like she may burst into tears at any moment. "Ten years of malice, hatred and bloodlust."

A black fog erupted from Marie's body, obscuring the prisoners' view of the battlefield. Ruben cast a glance over his shoulder, frowning at the black mist that had formed between Marie and the prisoners.

"Ozara, what's happening? Why's Marie made that barrier?"

The psychic screamed suddenly, yelling into her communicator.

"Bomb squad! Don't look back. Don't look at Marie! I couldn't tell you what she is anymore, just don't look!"

Ruben turned away as Marie _changed_ , her being unfolding as the rage contained within her mask took form, incomprehensible things flickering on the edge of tangibility. The sight clawed at Ruben's mind. Tohn picked up on his want to observe.

"Don't do it, Ruben..."

Despite his own fear, Ruben turned, the sight burning itself into his mind. He screamed, unimaginable pain searing through his mind. His head was wrenched away from the spectacle by Tohn. When asked what he saw, Ruben shook his head, whimpering.

An animalistic screech was emitted by Marie, and a different alarm was raised by the Sentient, a fast, repetitive ringing signalling extreme danger. The Sentient's numbers immediately doubled. Marie's form bent, a crack of energy reducing three Sentient fighters to dust. The bombs squad ran for the Dojo, using the opportunity to their advantage, despite Ruben's damaged state. The Sentient was completely focused on Marie, so they made the remaining distance in just ten minutes, carrying the bomb into the Dojo. The group stopped.

"Where now?" Vulture asked.

"We go up." Tohn said. "I'm sending the internal map to your lenses."

Sure enough, the map in the corner of Vulture's eye flickered, the outside topography replaced with corridors and a marker that he had not seen before.

"You'll be seeing an elevator marker on there. You needn't bother with them, just follow the yellow objective marker."

* * *

Marie stood before hundreds of Sentient fighters. As soon as she had put on the mask, the Sentient had panicked, several waves of fighters descending at once to surround her. It didn't matter to her anymore. She couldn't feel anything other than rage, bloodlust and a disgusting amount of power.

"Now this is most interesting." Hunhow said, speaking through his fighters. "Such an amazing amount of power. I simply cannot allow anyone else to have it."

Marie watched from the back of her mind as one fighter approached. She had swiftly realised that she was no longer in control when she put on the mask, and that she was isolated from the souls making up the tar. For the first time in a decade, her mind was quiet. It was a good feeling, but she had to escape.

The Sentient approached and, as it raised its arm to attack, Marie struck out, her fist grasping hold of its core. One pulse of black emanated from her body, and the fighter collapsed into dust. The rest of the fighters decided to give no quarter, Battalysts opening fire all around her. Despite her armour having retreated once the mask took effect, she took no damage, the energy bolts simply dissipating before they hit her, swallowed by the energy in which her body was wreathed. Letting out a scream of rage, Marie leapt up into the air, descending onto the horde, rending and tearing through fighters as they arrived.

* * *

"Quick, bring it into this room."

Vulture and his Scavengers followed Tohn through a final set of doors, arriving in an observatory. Tohn gestured for them to take the device to the centre console. With a final groan, the Octolings stood it upright, stepping back and shaking the aches out of their arms, breathing heavily. Tohn punched the console, pulling a large cable out, the holographic display deactivating as he did so. Vulture watched as the port on the side of the bomb changed shape.

"How does it do that? Change shape?" He asked.

"Something called Forma. It changes shape to match what we need, or we can use it to upgrade our gear." Tohn plugged it in and spoke to Ordis.

"Reroute all available power to the observatory. The bomb has been planted."

"Processing now."

The warning lights flickered out, and the bomb activated, a sickly teal glow filling the room. Geiger counters on Vulture's armour began clicking.

"The Sentient can't get in here now, can they?"

"No. The Void is poison to them."

"Good. Marie seemed to have had them pretty distracted anyway."

"Uh, boss? We have a problem." A Scavenger spoke up.

"What is it?"

Vulture was beckoned to the window of the observatory. Outside, the dark clouds shrouding Marie had vanished, and she was nowhere to be seen. The Sentient that had been spared her fury were floating around, confused. That was when two things happened. First, the proximity alarms in each squad member's lenses went off. Second, the door to the observatory opened. Tohn saw why the tar had formed a cloud to protect the prisoners as Marie stepped into the room. She looked _horrific_ , bones of energy glowing beneath skin that had stretched to account for her new form, making her appear gaunt and skeletal. The mask had fused to her face, giving her the appearance of a constant, pained scream. The energy that coiled around her no longer formed the faces of nightmares which, in Tohn's opinion, was why they were still sane despite looking straight at her. Ruben was terrified, his back pressed against the glass as far away as he could get from the creature stood before them. The Scavengers were paralysed, looking at their weapons, each other and Marie, unsure as to what to do. The masked Inkling sounded like she was wheezing, slow breaths being sucked in and out rhythmically. She tilted her head, looking at the bomb.

"Marie..." Vulture started.

"Stop. It's not her." Tohn said. "It's the mask."

The line separating the mask from her flesh was, alarmingly, less obvious than it had been. Tohn recoiled when he saw that the metal had spread and dug into her skin, specks of brightly-coloured blood having leaked out and stained the metal. Tohn also realised that despite the large mouth-hole, he could not see Marie's face. With a jolt of shock, he looked over her body again, confirming that he couldn't see any skin elsewhere on her body.

 _Combine that with not being hurt by Battalyst attacks..._

"Marie, or whatever you are, am I correct in thinking you absorb energy?"

A cacophony of shrieks emanated from her, quickly focusing into a coherent message.

"Yes."

"Good. Then physical attacks should do the trick."

A wave crashed against Marie, forcing her into the corridor. At the same time, the window that Ruben had been leaning against shattered.

"Everyone out!"

The seven of them dived out, a howling, murderous bellow heralding their egress. The Octolings fired at the ground, creating a pool in which they could land safely. Upon landing, a quick glance upwards confirmed that Marie was pursuing them. They ran.

"Ruben! Make sure she stays focused on us!" Vulture demanded. "We'll lead her back to the Sentient!"

* * *

When the black fog had vanished, the Sentient had quickly realised that the powerful Inkling had vanished and capitalised on it, reconvening and approaching the prisoners. The thirty survivors prepared their weapons, and Ozara and Zantzi came to the front, opening fire on the approaching fighters. In the distance, a window on the Dojo shattered. Marie's attack had more than quartered the number of Sentient fighters, but more were always flying in from above, quickly reversing any losses.

 _That bomb better work in the next few minutes..._ Zantzi thought as the next wave of Sentient landed. Another ship appeared in the airspace- Mu's Landing Craft. Out of it dropped the eleven Defenders, Raaz, and finally Mu herself. The Mantis launched a Medical Tower, the device landing in the middle of the remaining prisoners. Zantzi immediately used a charge, the prisoners gasping and chuckling as the restorative pulse healed them. The new arrivals joined the fray, attacking the Sentient with all they had. And still they descended, the portal raging in the upper atmosphere lit with gold lightning. Droves of fighters hit the ground, the number of fighters reaching two hundred again.

"Surely you can see this is futile." Hunhow spoke. "I am creating more fighters all the time. These losses are nothing. You can have no victory here."

At that moment, the Dojo erupted with a blinding golden light, the pillar extending into the upper atmosphere, attracted to the portal. A warning siren sounded for the Sentient, but it was too late- anything coming through the portal was annihilated by the beam, space unfolding and returning to normal as the synthetic reactant worked according to Ruben's specification. Zantzi laughed.

"How about that, Hunhow? Your portal is now flooded with Void Energy. You cannot win."

"You forget, puppet, that I have fighters on the ground. Your fighting force is almost gone. You will die by my hand."

"Aegis. Container."

"Already ready."

Aegis raised her fists, gilded fragments having been incorporated to her and her Defenders' gauntlets.

"Void Energy really is great, isn't it?"

She walked forward and punched the nearest fighter, watching as it dissolved. Void-powered weaponry was brought to bear, and under the onslaught Hunhow's forces dissolved.

"Fine." He said. "I will find another to be my bridge to this world. In fact, four Orbiters and therefore, four Tenno are vulnerable. I even have their wavelengths and energy signature. My bones will eclipse your willpower and bring you to my side."

"You've got that wrong." Ozara said. "The bomb had one other function. Hunhow, why don't you analyse that beam of energy?" She could feel his boredom with the situation.

"There is an encrypted message, no, a signal. Land. Cross through the portal... What is this?"

Four fireballs appeared in the sky, four Orbiters crash-landing on the planet, glowing with heat and Void Energy.

"Face it Hunhow, you've been beat."

"Rest assured I will hurt you. You will incur tenfold the damage you have dealt to me today."

His transmission was cut off as the portal closed, the beam cutting off as sirens inside the Dojo rang out. The Infestation was converging on the noise. Zantzi frowned.

"The bomb squad isn't back yet."

Five Octolings landed next to Raaz, their armour gouged but intact. Vulture stood up, quickly locating Raaz.

"Ruben and Tohn don't stand a chance. They're still inside the lethal radius. Marie is going to kill them!"

* * *

Ruben tried to stand and failed, the crumpled armour around his left knee unable to support him. His right arm had been similarly crushed, yet still he was in a better state than Tohn. Both of his legs were non-functional, and he only had use of his right arm. He had engaged Marie in close combat, and she had made short work of him, whirling claws and fury ripping through his shields and shredding his armour in an instant. He had been tossed aside like a broken toy. Yet he still fired away with his sidearm, refusing to go down without a fight. Marie was now approaching for the kill, her rhythmic wheezing acting as Tohn's death knell. As she approached, Tohn realised with no shortage of surprise that she was _crying._

"Please..." She whispered. "Help me..."

Her body moved of its own accord, spinning and delivering a savage kick to Ruben, who had attempted to rush her. His injured leg had prevented him from building up any sort of speed. She switched targets, but not before stomping on Tohn's shoulder, crushing it and preventing Tohn from moving at all. She moved to the downed form of Ruben, a hand gesture pulling his soul from his chest. He groaned in terror. Tohn was powerless to do anything as she took it in her hands and placed it in her mouth, Ruben screaming as her teeth pierced it. His screams intensified until a missile of water knocked it free, the orb quickly sinking back into Ruben's chest. He attempted to move away from Marie, pushing himself backwards as she moved towards Tohn.

"Help me, please..." She whispered.

Despite the agony he was feeling, Tohn was still focused. He could see that the mask was expanding, the metal having spread underneath Marie's chin and back towards her ears.

"Ruben! Kill me!" Tohn shouted. "Do it now!"

Ruben saw the logic- if their souls were destroyed, there would be no revivals. However, if Tohn died, he could revive, and his armour would be repaired by the surge. One bolt of lightning was all it took, Tohn going limp as it struck, only for him to spring to his feet and overflow with energy. He used his few moments of invulnerability to pick up Ruben and run with him, Marie easily closing the distance and slashing at his legs. The pair fell, and Tohn was sure that it was game over for both of them. He did not expect to see the dirt expand and explode, a figure erupting from the ground and delivering an enormously powerful double kick into Marie, sending her flying backwards towards the Dojo. Raaz quickly grabbed Ruben and Tohn, dragging them into the ground as the second stage detonated, gold energy and blue antiserum exploding in every direction. The masked form of Marie roared with anger, the energy of the explosion enveloping her.

* * *

Raaz resurfaced, hauling his two passengers with him. The two Tenno were quickly joined by the other three members of the Crimson Hammer. The amassed creatures looked up as a blue mist descended, the tumorous growths of the Infestation bleaching and dissolving under it. The colour faded from the growths and the bleaching spread, slowly but surely neutralising the Infestation. Vulture moved his hands to his mask, moving to take it off, only to stop and look at Zantzi. The Tenno nodded. Vulture removed his mask, darkness evaporating from between the threads and joints and returning to Raaz. His Scavengers did the same, grimacing when they smelt the stench of death on the air. The smells of death, burnt flesh and ozone hung heavy.

"Hey!" Atra shouted. "Can we have this armour taken of too?"

Raaz looked at her.

"I can't. Marie was the one who formed it. And besides, Ozara? Have you found anything?"

She nodded.

"There's a life form over there, close to the Dojo."

"We can't have you going anywhere, so I'd get comfortable if I were you. I'll give you five seconds."

"What do you mean by that?"

"Armour lock."

"What?"

Atra overbalanced as the armour refused to move, falling to the ground.

"Hey! Let me up!"

Raaz looked to the still functioning Crimson Hammer. Tohn shot Ruben, allowing the latter to revive. Tohn simply used a Conculyst club as a crutch. The five Tenno and Raaz headed out across the battlefield to where the life sign was coming from. Geiger counters had begun to click, so Raaz thickened his armour slightly. He didn't want to have to content with liquefaction after all that just happened.

"There!" Zantzi pointed.

On the ground up ahead was an Inkling. Around them, the ground had smouldered, and a metal mask was attached to their face.

"Marie!" Raaz shouted. He ran, approaching and kneeling by her side. When he went to remove her mask, an invisible force stopped him.

"D-don't..." Marie wheezed. "It'll try to possess you if you remove it. I'm dying, and it'll die with me."

"The mask was controlling you?"

"From the moment I put it on. It overwhelmed me."

Besides Raaz, the Tenno had arrived. They were torn between looking at Marie and looking at the blackened figure forming next to Raaz. Ozara had a hand to her head in pain. He noticed it, looking at the new arrival.

"You're the souls that were inside Marie's body."

"Yes." The amalgamation's voice was made up of many smaller voices, all speaking in sync. "We want to help. Yet we cannot."

"Why not?"

"If we take her damage, she will be restored. She will be possessed by the mask again."

"Wait, let me think." Raaz said. "If I take off the mask, I'll be possessed. But you can prevent that, right?"

"We can."

"So if I remove the mask, you can heal her before she passes away, right?"

"Yes. We can do this. But do you know how she avoids injury?"

"No."

"The damage is reflected onto one of us, destroying a soul. Do you still want to go through with this, with the blood of at least two souls on your hands?"

"Yes."

The amalgamation expanded, enveloping Raaz and Marie.

"Begin."

Raaz moved his hands to Marie's masked face, tilting her head in either direction to gauge the extent to which the mask had spread.

"What... What are you doing?"

Raaz turned one of his fingers into a blade.

"Sorry, this will hurt."

The second his finger made contact, a deafening bellow erupted inside his skull. The souls reacted, muting it with their own psychic power. Marie had never felt pain like it. Raaz cut around the mask, only digging in deep enough to dislodge the tendrils that had dug into Marie's flesh. Tears rolled down the face of the mask. After cutting simultaneously around her face, Raaz lifted the mask off and immediately came under attack from it, the rage inside trying to move his hands to place it on his face. He collapsed onto one knee, trying to relinquish the object, but found himself unable to. He thought he would succumb, but before he did so, four enormous barrels appeared over his shoulder, four shotgun shells being emptied into the mask, each one punching through the metal with ease until the mask broke in two, Raaz falling onto his front, muscles screaming at him. With barely a second's hesitation, he took Marie's hand, switching to her colour and creating a pool of ink, lowering her into it. She sank completely, resurfacing after a few seconds completely healed. She looked at Raaz.

"Why are people always putting their lives on the line for me?"

"We all love you too much."

"How sweet."

Marie turned to the amalgamation.

"I'm guessing you took the lethal damage caused by the mask?"

"Yes."

Marie buried her head in her hands.

"I've caused the death of so many of you. I don't deserve your power."

"Look at yourself." It said. "You can still see, without our power, despite having no eyes."

"That is... True. Huh, I didn't realise. But even so. I've hurt you so much. I failed to stop the Tenno and caused the death of so many more innocent people. I even lead those prisoners to their deaths!" She sobbed. "Marie Cuttlefish, the greatest monster of them all."

"In doing so, saving so many more. We can think of no other to share our power with."

It held its hand out. Marie laughed sadly.

"Really?" She asked. "After all I've done?"

Raaz kicked her.

"My god, you're stronger than this, come on. Get a grip."

Marie laughed again, genuine mirth in it this time.

"Alright. I guess there's still things I need to fix."

She took its hand, the amalgamation vanishing into her body, the familiar hushed noise of souls filling her head.

* * *

When Ara woke the following morning, the black text was still there. Except it was different, and simply read: "The real world is clean. Return to the surface." Ara had shaken Flint awake.

"Flint, hey, Flint, we can go home! The world is clean again!"

In the plaza, citizens were filing out through the monolith, the world growing progressively foggier with each person leaving. Once the last one stepped through, the fog engulfed everything, the dream ceasing to exist. The many dreamers had woke up, hauling themselves out of the tar and being directed out of the shaft, soon appearing on the surface. Once the shaft was empty, the millions of tons of earth and rock reappeared, the tar replacing it before returning to Marie.

"You can return to your homes. If there's any problems, we'll see what we can do!" Ozara shouted to the masses. She was accompanied by Zantzi, who was very clearly waiting for someone. Ozara could see her in Zantzi's mind. What she neglected to tell Zantzi was that she was creeping up behind him. She leapt at him, a flying kick connecting with his head and overbalancing him. He twisted as he fell, landing on his back. Isla was sat on his chest.

"Uh, hi." He said.

Marie had returned the prisoners to Hades, and with some regret she had suppressed their memories of defending the world. She had instead, with the help of Ozara, planted a suggestion that an exceptionally lethal, unknown disease had taken the lives of over half of the prisoners. Technically, it was true. For good measure, the guards had been given the same suggestion.

"You have a lot to explain." Isla told Zantzi, a playful smirk on her face.

Ozara laughed and walked away, leaving them to their reunion. She was quickly intercepted by Vulture, who directed her towards Aegis, where the other three members of the Crimson Hammer were waiting.

"What is it?"

"You're gonna be sticking around for a while, aren't you? You cut off your only way out of here."

"A necessary sacrifice." Ruben said.

"Never mind that." Aegis continued. "So, you're all like Zantzi, aren't you? Armour controlled by kids? We want you to help us out, keep the peace, so to speak. You like doing that, right?"

"Yes... Why?" Ruben asked.

"Well." Aegis laughed and stretched her fingers, completely unsettling the Tenno. "Before we even get to your salary, we're gonna have to teach you how to walk."

* * *

 **3 Stories, 44 chapters and about 152051 words later, we have reached the end! Thank you to everyone who stuck with these three stories to the very end. Your reviews mean a lot to me. I hope you have enjoyed the ride!**


End file.
